Authors: Katalyn Sage
“Alright,”
Eros said. “Follow me.”
He
led them through the foyer and down the hall between the curved staircases. She
was surprised to hear footsteps behind her and turned to see that everyone
followed, curious what Ally’s father had to show. He stopped in front of the
tall, gilded mirror that sat in the hallway that led to the kitchen. He eyed
the garland that hung from it before turning a raised brow at Ally. “You’re
just like your mother.” As soon as he said it, he winced and closed his eyes.
“Sorry.”
She
glanced at the mirror and then at him. “It’s okay. It’s hard to think she’s not
here anymore.”
“I
think she is.” He exhaled on a rush and slid his hand over the glass. His hand
passed through the mirror, and Ally gasped.
“It’s
a doorway,” Eros explained. “Magic controls who can get in. To everyone else,
it’s just a mirror.” He demonstrated by stepping through and sticking his head
out again, offering his hand to his daughter. “Try.”
Ally
held on to Draven’s hand as her other clasped on to Eros’s. She stepped
through, taking care to step over the mirror’s frame as she did. Draven
followed shortly after, refusing to let go of her hand.
“It’s
like a portal,” Garrick said, running his hand over the glass. He’d tried to
push, but his hand didn’t go through.
“It’s
not,” Eros said, his head poking through again.
Garrick
took a hasty step back from the mirror, muttering, “Fuck,” as he did. He eyed
the god and the mirror opening. “Could I create my own portal to get in?”
Eros
shrugged. “You could try. But unless you’re authorized to enter, it won’t do
any good.”
“Okay,
so how do we get in?” Raider asked.
“Ally
just has to clear you. But, for now....” He reached a hand out, upturned. “If
you take each others’ hands, you can all step through. Oh, and don’t worry
about stepping over the frame, this whole part of the wall is a doorway.”
Raine
took his hand, and then gripped Ferox’s, who was staring slack-jawed at this
new turn of events. Of course, she thought, this would all be completely new to
him. She placed the toe of her right foot against the wall under the mirror,
shocked that it went through. With another step, she was in another room,
followed quickly by Ferox and the others. As she turned to watch them come
through, she was able to see out into the hallway as though there wasn’t a door
at all. The Guardians in the hallway could be seen and heard as easily as if
they were in the same room.
“See?”
Eros said to Ally. “This room is completely hidden from the outside world, no
one can see or hear us while we’re in here.”
Raine
peered at him before focusing on the others as the last few stepped through the
mirror. She could only hope to find out where Ally’s father was leading them,
and why it would warrant such security.
****
Ally
glanced around, taking in the art on the walls and a few glass cases dispersed
throughout the room, displaying weapons haloed in bright lights. She felt as if
she was in some kind of war museum. “So this has been here the whole time, and
you’re just telling me
now
?”
Her
father smiled at her, silently calculating some sort of response. She knew his
expressions well enough, though she hadn’t grown up knowing he was her father.
Formerly known as her uncle Phanes, she’d been more than shocked to learn the
truth of her parentage only a matter of weeks ago. While very few knew him as
Phanes, he was well known as both Eros and the Protogonos. One of the first
beings to ever exist, he was a Primordial God. And she was his daughter. He’d
brought her here to the home he’d built for her after the attack on Unitas.
“It
wasn’t the right time.” He shrugged.
Putting
her hands on her hips, she glared up at him, ignoring Draven’s hand as he
gripped her shoulder. “What is that supposed to mean?”
“He
means,” the Fates said, their voices ringing around the room as though they
were everywhere at once, “that there was no point in showing you this part of
the house until there was a need for it.”
She
turned her angry glare on them. “And you knew there would be a need for it,
didn’t you?”
“We
did,” they replied, though she hadn’t phrased it as a question.
Why
hadn’t they done something to stop it?
“We
cannot change things that should not be changed,” they answered, without her
having said a word. She didn’t know why their power—and their incredible
ability to read her mind—always seemed to surprise her, but they’d succeeded
yet again.
“Now,”
Eros said, “are you ready to see the rest?”
She
nodded, letting her hands drop to her sides.
Her
father winked and gave her a teasing smile. He turned away and approached a set
of golden doors that looked unmistakably like elevator doors. He pressed a
button on the left side of the double-doors, and they opened within seconds. He
walked in and turned around, waiting for the others to shuffle in as well.
Draven
and Ethan glanced at each other, clearly both a little more than uncomfortable
with getting in after their last run-in with an elevator, but they did anyway,
standing by Ally’s side as Raine and Ferox entered as well. The others would
ride down in a minute.
“See
you on the third floor,” Eros said, just before the doors closed.
“How
many floors are there?” Ethan gawked as they were all closed in together.
“Three,
excluding the floor we were just on.”
His
brows shot up, and Ally flicked her gaze toward him.
“Huh,”
Draven grunted. “I wondered why you hadn’t built in a basement.”
Eros
smiled at him knowingly. “Oh, there is certainly a basement.”
“What’s
down here?” Ally asked.
“An
entire underground fortress. Complete with rooms, kitchens, security and
surveillance…. Pretty much everything you could need.”
A
chime sounded and the doors slid open, revealing a long, brightly lit hallway.
It looked more like a fancy hotel than an underground bunker, but then again, a
god had designed it. Ally stepped out of the elevator, turning around as her
father, Draven, Ethan, Ferox, and Raine followed her. The doors closed and the
gentle whirring of the motors hummed as the elevator rose to pick up the
others. “What’s on this floor?”
“Shall
we?” her father asked, stepping past her and striding down the hall. “There is
a lot to cover.”
Before
they were even done looking through the first room, the other Guardians had
caught up with them. Eros had explained everything again, informing them that
underneath the house, in a much wider space, was a fortress they could use for
their own purposes. The top two floors of the fortress were mainly rooms and
bathrooms—forty of each on each floor, to be exact—though each floor also had a
dining room and kitchen as well. The bottom floor had everything else: there
was a security room, complete with computers, servers, GPS mapping, and even a
giant table and chairs so that there was plenty of room for every Guardian—and
then some—to sit around and discuss issues that arose. Blaze had already dubbed
it the “war room”, which seemed fitting under the circumstances.
Just
down the hall was a passageway that led to a utility room housing generators
and a back-up water supply, all of which was vented for residents’ safety.
There was a workout room that had all the latest-and-greatest workout
equipment, which was fortified for immortal use—a fact that Ally had never
considered possible. There was even an underground swimming pool with a
skylight that opened up to the bottom of a pond that was on her property. If it
hadn’t been frozen over at the moment, she was sure she could see right up to
the night sky, all while watching fish swim lazily in the water.
“How
do we gain entrance?” Raider asked after Eros had shown them around.
“You
don’t like holding hands?” Blaze teased.
He
ignored him, keeping his eyes trained on her father. “You mentioned earlier
that Ally has to do it.”
“Yes,”
Eros nodded, “it was created so that she and she alone can grant permission.
Let’s go back upstairs.”
As
they’d done before, they took the elevator in two shifts, meeting up in the
room on the main floor of the mansion.
“Does
this look familiar?” Eros asked her.
Ally
turned toward the far wall, seeing a pedestal with a shining golden globe
sitting atop it, looking very much like the one she’d seen at Unitas. Her
father must have stood in front of it before. “Yes,” she said, touching the
smooth surface.
“This
is how you authorize who can enter.”
“So,
what, do I just say, ‘hey, everyone here is cleared for entry’?”
Her
father smiled. “No, it’s a little more than that. You need to ‘clear’ everyone
individually. I’ll show you.” He looked around the room, settling on Raine.
“Can you?”
She
stepped forward and, at Eros’s instruction, she and Ally stood on opposite
sides of the pedestal, with their hands touching the globe.
“Why
not Draven?” Ally asked, suddenly feeling uncomfortable in case she screwed
something up.
“That
would be too simple. You already have a strong bond with him. You need to learn
what a connection with someone else feels like. “Now, focus on Raine’s
connection to you. Can you feel it through your hands?”
Yes,
she could. She nodded, concentrating.
“Great,
now what do your instincts tell you to do?”
Ally
closed her eyes, seeing the connection between her and Draven’s mom. The swirls
and patterns playing before her closed eyes were fascinating, though she pushed
through that to connect with Raine herself. Raine must have felt it too,
because she gasped. The Valkyrie was filled with worry, though that wasn’t
surprising. They’d been ready to go out looking for Riley when her father had
shown up and decided to show them the underground fortress. Everyone here was
ready to set out and search any demon hideout they could find.
She
didn’t speak out loud, just let the moment take her over, and before she knew
it, the connection passed, and her eyes snapped open at the same instant as
Raine’s.
“That’s
it?” Raine asked, eyes wide.
Ally
shrugged and looked at her father.
“Try
it out then. Step outside and try to come back in.”
“‘Kay.”
Raine lifted her hands from the globe and strode toward the doorway that led to
the rest of the house. Everyone, including Ally, watched as she stepped through
into the hallway and then turned around, stepping through once more. “Looks
like we’re good.”
“I
didn’t do anything,” Ally gaped, causing Eros and Draven to snicker.
“You
did. It was your acceptance of her that granted permission.” He turned toward
her fully then, lowering his voice. “Remember, this isn’t to be taken lightly.
Only allow those you trust to keep it a secret.”
She
glanced at the others in the room, unsure if everyone here needed access. The
Guardians for sure, but what about Ash, Nitro, Garrick, and Dani? They were all
so new to the fold that she just didn’t know.
Her
father saw her hesitation. “Don’t just look with your eyes to know if they need
it.”
She
blinked, gaping at him. How could he know what she’d experienced with Raine?
Ever since her ascension, she had another sense within her, as though she could
tell the rights and wrongs within other beings; or even their intent. Yes, she
would grant everyone here access, and she’d need to hurry through it if they
wanted to search for Riley tonight.
She
wondered briefly how many other surprises her father had for her. She’d have to
have a little chat with him when she got a chance.
Taking
Draven’s hand, she led him to the globe, knowing without a doubt that her
vampire needed full access. And with that, she closed her eyes, focusing on the
connection between them.
Chapter Eleven
“Do
you think she’s in the city?”
“Like
I have any idea,” Caleen huffed, glaring at Odette. “Why would she leave the
house when she knows damn well the others are after her? Ugh! She hasn’t
changed in centuries; she’s still just as stubborn as ever!”
The
taxi driver’s eyes met hers through the rearview mirror, and she slumped against
the backseat, squished between her sisters. How in the Hel had the Guardians
allowed her to leave? They’d taken
being under the ever-scrutinizing gaze of one of the Guardians. They hadn’t
wanted their help in healing her, no matter that this realm had “all the finest
medicine.” So they had carefully taken
least. She’d turned on the TV and seemed happy to spend her time doing that as
she, Odette, and Raven packed their things.