Tempting Ecstasy (The Guardians of the Realms Book 4) Read online

  They were running out of time. If they lost more warriors before Ares and Artemis attacked, they would all fall. They may have days. Or maybe years. Either way, he’d trained Hades’ legions with precision, and it still wouldn’t be enough.

  Conn stood tall in the face of the God he’d served since taking his first breath. The Creators had formed the original Immortals to care for their children when they were forced to leave this world to propagate others. That had been long centuries ago. Before their children had grown and began abusing their power for their own amusements.

  “Interesting,” Hades said, but there was a hint of anger under the surface. What had happened?

  “How so?” Conn stood. His pose was relaxed, completely comfortable in his nudity, less so with the lies and intrigue he was forced to deal in.

  “Pothos has not responded to my calls. Why would my son be avoiding me?” Hades was not at all happy, and Conn wondered why Pothos hadn’t at least answered his father’s mental call. He hoped nothing had happened on the Demi-God’s dangerous task. All would be lost if Pothos failed. After years of training, he kept his features relaxed, amused, his expression keeping the tension at a minimum when he wanted to clench his jaw tight instead.

  “Would you like me to call the others and search for him?” Conn offered. He knew his part in their actions would likely be a death sentence whether the Creators came back or not. There would be massive loss of life when the call went out, if Pothos was even able to find the artifact. The Immortals would do what they had to in order to distract the Gods and get those they could out of harm’s way.

  “Yes, it seems Apollo has abducted another of my warriors.”

  Conn stilled.

  “Brianne was just seen taken from outside the walls.” Hades eyes flashed.

  Fear and dread slammed into him, hard, painfully. Banked fury filled the God’s otherworldly eyes as sickness and fury filled Conn’s gut. They’d taken Brianne, one of the last Immortals who’d originally served Hades with him. For centuries they’d been friends. She was smart, how in the Creators’ names had Apollo gotten to her. She trained the warriors by his side. He held his features in check. They were friends, and if the reports were true, she had just entered a world of torment and experimentation, followed by becoming nothing more than a breeder for Apollo’s army. It was a fate he wouldn’t wish on any female.

  Kepe had gone still in front of Hades. She knew Brianne, but more, Kepe was one of the few Immortals to have escaped Apollo’s palace, decades ago. She’d come directly to Hades and served there for all the years since. She knew better than most what Brianne would be forced to do. Knew the horrors Apollo and Hermes would inflict on their friend. Kepe’s eyes shot to his, the hard glint clear; she expected him to save Brianne. He wasn’t sure he could, but he would sure as hell try. Apollo had locked down his island to the point where no Immortal had escaped in decades. Brianne wouldn’t get out without help.

  Kepe nodded before turning back to Hades’ hard shaft. Her shoulders were tense, her arousal all but gone. Hades’ gaze softened as he looked down at her and stroked her cheek. The bastard had moments where he wasn’t all bad. The God’s gaze came back up and snared Conn. He wasn’t sure what Hades knew, but he felt an itch at the back of his neck that didn’t sit well.

  “Go find my son.” Power filled the air, charged it.

  Conn nodded sharply and then slipped on his clothes and weapons as he left the balcony. He needed to get word to Draken about Pothos not answering Hades’ calls, and hoped the other Demi-God would not find Pothos dead and the Realms’ only hope lost.

  His muscles ached from keeping them locked down. He knew what he had to do. If Pothos was dead or failed in his task, he wouldn’t chance his sister warrior being lost forever to Apollo and Hermes. She wouldn’t appreciate his sacrifice, but he wasn’t staying outside when they had her. The experiments they would conduct on him would make him stronger, make him a beast. He took a deep breath of the sea air, of the freedom he was leaving. He would take the potion Pothos and Draken had come up with. Something that should at least give him the ability to contact them from the inside.

  It was meant to be used when Pothos found the artifact and called the Creators back.

  The mystery of how Apollo was compelling Immortals to leave the walls had been plaguing them all. He’d soon find out, and hopefully be able to convey those answers to Pothos and Draken, preventing any others from being taken and used to strengthen Apollo’s legions. There weren’t nearly enough Immortals left outside those walls.

  He rolled his neck and made his final plans.

  Chapter 1

  Earth Realm

  Conn had started every night for the past three weeks in the same place. An empty Victorian in the small town, it held less and less of her scent as time passed. He knew from information he’d dug up in the owner’s home that there would be a new tenant soon. She was moving there. Or he hoped he was right in that guess; his gut told him he was. It could have been that she was there for some other purpose, but he didn’t believe it, not after checking all the dead-end leads for the new female tenant. The only applicant he hadn’t been able to track down.

  She still hadn’t come back, but she wasn’t set to move in quite yet.

  He teleported to the only other place he’d found her scent when he’d started his hunt. His booted feet stood on the dirt and rock ledge where she’d had to have lingered in the foothills. At least long enough to hold a bit of her. She must have stood there or somewhere close when he’d first detected her scent. He relaxed his body and let the night air flow over him, pushing his longish hair out of his face. He let his fingers slide through so his palms rested behind his head, and stood, anticipating finding his mate. His lips curved. She’d be there soon enough, and he’d get his first look.

  He’d never imagined being given a mate, and now claiming her was all that drove him, even with the stress that ate at him regarding his sister Guardian. He took a deep breath and relaxed his tense muscles as he moved his hands to sit on his hips. He’d spent a week cataloguing every inch of his surroundings from that area down to the town below. Now he only had to wait.

  He wondered if she’d come up there for the view of her new home. Standing with his feet at the edge of the steep rock drop-off, he peered down miles to the right where the corner of Cynthia’s property was visible through the trees. It was there on that side of the traitorous Mageia’s property where the cock-wrenching scent of her had hit him. Only a hint, enough to know what she meant to him, and that she wasn’t close to the danger. It had taken every ounce of will to stay there and fight when all he’d wanted to do was go to her, the female he knew in that instant was fucking his. The fight against the Mageia, an evolved human with elemental ability, had been a fucking nightmare.

  His wolf’s senses were strong. One of the strongest in the Immortal races, which meant that her sweet earthy scent was now imbedded inside him, making his beast agitated as fuck at the wait.

  Losing the chance to track her that night might not have been quite so fucked up if he and his brothers had actually taken Cynthia down, but the Mageia had escaped for a second time. She’d screwed with their enhanced senses and blown the place up as she’d exited through hidden tunnels below. The smoke messed with their ability to track her as well. The Guardians’ enemy was smart, had given herself an escape route, and the time to put it to use. He stretched his neck and scented the cool night air again, smelling nothing but the forest and the small creatures that hid inside it. His muscles bunched. He could use a good run, needed to let his beast have a little freedom, since it wasn’t getting what it wanted tonight.

  The rock edge made for an unobstructed view of lights peeking through the trees miles below. The fight had been at night. He wondered if she’d come up there to look down at the lights and smoking chimneys that he was seeing now. The town was filled with old Victorian homes on tree-lined streets with a small park in the center. He checked out every
inch. It was quiet, family oriented. He went into the businesses and homes at night; he grinned thinking about how much he would have stuck out walking around the town in daylight. Not that it mattered, but his mate had been cautious in hiding herself; he wasn’t sure if she’d run if she knew he hunted her. His size would have been memorable even if he bothered to cover his tattooed arms and removed his eyebrow piercings. He grinned down at the lights. Fuck, he couldn’t wait.

  He looked back to the right one more time, to the other side of the rubble that was left of Cynthia’s compound. His sight was exceptional, but trees blocked all but that small corner, the corner he’d been standing in before they’d gone after Cynthia… The wind had to have carried her scent down to him from this perch, but not his to her. Downwind. His lips tilted with the knowledge that she likely had no idea what was coming for her. Anticipation had him primed for weeks. He smiled. The fact that she’d hidden her tracks and identity so damned well indicated she was smart, and he liked that. Every rare mated pair he’d seen were perfectly matched, and he hoped to hell that was the case for him.

  He felt the moment Jax ported next to him, and he turned his head and cocked a pierced brow at his brother Guardian. He knew his amber eyes were bright with excited anticipation, it didn’t matter that he’d never seen her. Her scent alone was enough to keep his wolf on edge, waiting for her, wanting her no matter what.

  He’d gone without a female for weeks. His hand giving him the only release he’d take until he claimed his female. It took the edge off, even if it wasn’t overly satisfying and left him with a semi.

  Jax answered his silent question. “I drew the short straw. Though in my defense, Gregoire’s moody ass wouldn’t draw at all. He’s out of his fucking mind now that Alyssa’s knocked up.” Jax’s blue eyes lit with amusement and mild irritation. The dark-haired Guardian was the most wild and restless of the bunch. He was a couple of inches taller than Conn, and smelled of sex from the harem he kept in the Immortal Realm.

  Conn laughed a little.

  “Gotta love how Alyssa started off all smiles and indulging, and now she’s snapping at the bastard. Fucking hilarious.” Jax snorted out a laugh, and Conn shook his head. Their brother’s mate may be tiny compared to him, but she held her own against Gregoire’s possessiveness, and since finding out she was pregnant, she’d been forced to. They all knew Gregoire was a dick because he was scared for her. Gregoire was one of the largest Guardians at nearly seven foot, with larger muscle mass than any, other than Drake, their leader. Alyssa wasn’t more than a few inches over five foot, small everywhere but her tits, and Gregoire was trying to wrap her in cotton and carry her everywhere, literally.

  “She’ll be fine,” Conn said. Alyssa was strong, powerful and only getting more so as she and Gregoire’s abilities melded with their mating. “It still blows me away that she got pregnant so fast. It should have been years before that was possible. If it was something to do with Gregoire being a Guardian, then Alex should have been the first.” It was a mystery how things were going to work in the Guardians’ matings. Uri had been the first Guardian to find his, only a few short months ago, and so far no pregnancy for Alex.

  He and his brethren had spent millennia fighting together as the Guardians over the four Realms. When the Creators had appointed the twelve to their duties after sending the Gods to sleep for their sins, Conn had always thought those added gifts would make it impossible. Mated Immortals gained power, and the Guardians were near Gods in their abilities as it was.

  Now they all wondered what bad shit was coming, because he couldn’t imagine them getting more power unless they’d need it. That knowledge didn’t sit well with any of them.

  “Alex and Uri seem twitchy every time they see Alyssa.” Jax’s laughter at their brother’s stress was real, though somewhat strained.

  His brothers’ suffering might be more amusing to him if he wasn’t next. Soon he’d be in the same boat, wondering if his mate would be the next to get pregnant. He couldn’t say the idea of having a mate round with his young didn’t fucking get to him. In a big way. One that would send most females running in the opposite direction of his rock-hard dick. The beast inside howled at the idea of getting his female with child. The lack of any real sexual satisfaction probably wasn’t helping curb those thoughts.

  He and Jax both stood on the ledge, peering down at the lights a good mile away, avoiding the topic that had all the Guardians edgy.

  “Everything still the same with Vane and Brianne?” Conn asked the question knowing the answer, but unable to stop from checking. He knew Jax would have gone to check on Brianne before coming to see if he’d found his mate.

  Conn had checked his sister Guardian a few hours ago. He did it every day before handling only the minimum of his duties and then leaving to continue his hunt. He’d check on Brianne again before resting and then start the process all over again the next day. They’d formed a bond before becoming Guardians. Both had served as Hades’ Immortal attendants when the God was a damned child, and Conn refused to believe he might lose her now.

  Jax instantly sobered. “Yeah, I checked before heading here. Sirena said they’re doing the same.” Jax rolled his shoulders. They’d found the two lovers unconscious in Brianne’s home weeks ago. They’d all stood there, not quite believing what was happening. Drake’s fury nearly lit the place on fire as they’d taken their sister and Vane to the infirmary. Later they’d moved them to one of the private rooms. All the Guardians were worried. “Sirena says she’s still not sure when the transition will be complete.”

  “Drake worries they’ll have to be put down.” Conn rubbed the back of his neck. Everything inside him rejected the possibility that she wouldn’t come through it. Brianne had fucked up, but he couldn’t begrudge her the right to find happiness where she could. She’d always hid her loneliness behind a smart mouth and humor. It only bothered him that, of all people, she’d hidden a century-long affair from him. They’d obviously lost the old closeness they’d once had, and he’d never realized it. He felt like a bastard, and the guilt was eating at him.

  “She’s fucking tough as shit, and if any Immortal could house two beasts, it would be a Guardian.” Jax stood taller, a hard, serious glint to his eyes that didn’t match his usual playboy character. Of the twelve Guardians, only three were female, and though they were every bit as powerful as the males, they were still their sisters. The three may have viciously objected to any of their brothers’ protectiveness in the early centuries, but that didn’t mean the nine males let go of the instinct. Their sisters were ruthless in battle and held the males’ respect there, but this was fucking different.

  “Vane shouldn’t have been fucking her,” Jax nearly growled. They all liked Vane, but what was happening was screwed. Vane was a strong male, fought well by the Guardians’ sides since his sister, Alex, mated Uri. He would likely lose his life alongside Brianne if they couldn’t make it through the changes. Conn’s jaw tightened.

  Brianne was wild and reckless, entertaining with her smartass comments and hard exterior, but she would do anything for her brethren, or even the beings they fought to protect. Her heart was soft, and he knew the female she truly was, and refused to lose a sister that was closer than any blood sibling could be. He’d fucked up by not paying attention to her life as much as he should have been.

  “Sirena thinks Brianne’s link to us is her only hope of maintaining her human form.” Their healer sister hoped that somehow the combined Guardian power and mental links would keep Brianne from losing herself to the beasts trying to take her over. They all hoped to fuck she was right. Sirena had been trying everything to stop the progression, getting little to no rest with everything that was vying for her time and skill. So much had happened in the last few weeks. Mostly shit only Sirena could deal with, though they all tried to help.

  He knew everything was slowly wearing his healer sister down. He’d talked to Drake about it. She was stubborn as shit, though, and neither he
nor Drake had been able to really get her to rest much. Their sister may have the face of a sweet fucking pixie, but she had power and ruthless determination. She’d faced off with Drake and his dragon attitude more than once through the years when Conn’s cajoling hadn’t gotten her to take care of herself.

  Tensions were running high.

  “Sirena gave Erik and Alex the same instructions on trying to use their family bond with Vane to keep him from being lost to griffin form.” The races with beasts had never mixed. Apollo could only get an Immortal to house one beast, when he’d tried creating combinations the two beasts always took over. The Immortals never returned to their human form. The griffins were the most feral and vicious of the pairings, and that was exactly what the Guardians were worried Brianne’s bird and Vane’s lion forms would create. “That was Apollo playing Creator. I’ll be damned if Brianne falls to that fate. We’ll hold her.” There was a hard-edged finality to his tone that had Jax staring.

  They wouldn’t lose her. Between the eleven of them, they’d find a way to keep her to her human form. Alex and Erik would do what they could for their brother, and the Guardians would make sure they didn’t lose a sister. He and Jax turned their sights to the town below and stood for tense minutes as Conn forced his relaxed calm to settle in.

  “Does Sirena have any idea how long we have?” Brianne’s and Vane’s cells had been mutating for weeks, and through all the monitoring she’d never been sure when it would come to an end. They continued to patrol the Realms, or in Conn’s case, search for his mate, the wait was killing them all.