“Then, that’s it,” Delilah said. “Give him this.” She pulled the bottle out of her purse and slammed it into Sharah’s hand. “Do it.”
“But—but, are you sure?” The elf looked at me and I nodded.
Menolly stepped forward. “We don’t have a choice. If he’s going to die anyway, you might as well give it a shot, because I’m not interested in siring a son and that’s our only other option.”
Sharah let out a long sigh and then whirled, marching down the corridor. “Follow me,” she called.
We followed. As we entered Chase’s room, we saw that he was hooked up to numerous IV drips, and he was on a ventilator.
“He was stabbed four times, and sustained heavy damage to his internal organs,” Sharah said. “The knife went in at precisely the wrong spots. Whoever attacked him knew just how to inflict critical damage.”
Delilah flinched, but Sharah didn’t notice. She just pulled a large syringe out of the drawer. “The nectar of life will work when it’s injected, as well as when it’s swallowed.” As she slowly filled the syringe, she glanced up at my sister. “You know this is on your head? I know we need Chase, I know you love him, but I’m doing this against my better judgment. Without the rituals, this could create major changes in his personality as well as his body.”
“Do it,” Delilah said, growling.
I saw the flicker in her aura that presaged a transformation and hurried over to Sharah’s side. “Unless you want a very angry black panther in here, you’d better do what she asks. We’ll take responsibility.”
Sharah nodded and slowly began to inject the drug directly into Chase’s jugular vein. When the sparkling liquid had all disappeared, she stood back. “We’ll know in a minute if it’s going to save his life or not.”
Delilah dropped to her knees. “Great Mother Bast, I implore you. Please save Chase. I need him. I don’t know why you brought us together, but we’re not through yet. We’re not finished yet.”
Nobody said a word, as the seconds ticked by. And then, just as I thought it wasn’t going to work, Chase gasped and Sharah carefully removed the ventilator from his mouth. He wasn’t conscious yet, but he was breathing on his own. Another minute and the wounds on his side started to pull together. She hurried to slather a healing cream on him, then turned to Delilah.
“He’s going to live. And he’ll live far longer than most any other human ever will. You have one hell of a lot to help him adjust to, once he regains consciousness. I hope you’re up to the job because his life is now in your hands. Humans who drink the nectar of life usually have no concept of what it means to live a thousand years.”
As she began to check his vital signs, Delilah broke down in tears and Menolly led her over to one of the nearby chairs. I turned to find Smoky by my side. He slid his arm around me and we just stood there, silent, as the steady hum of the machines monitored Chase’s life.
CHAPTER 25
That evening, we were still trying to comprehend what had happened. It was too soon to figure out everything we’d need to do, but when the shock wore off, we had to make plans. We needed help, and I knew that I’d be paying a visit to Aeval, to enlist her aid, whatever the cost to me.
A knock on the door rattled me. Smoky went to answer it and came back with an odd expression on his face. “You’re wanted in the living room” was all he’d say.
As I peered around the corner, I got the surprise of my life. Standing there was Derisa, the High Priestess and emissary of the Moon Mother.
Derisa was tall, edging six five, and her hair was braided, hanging to her knees. With chiseled features, she looked fashioned from pale porcelain, with ocean blue eyes. Dressed in a long robe somewhere between black and indigo and covered with moons and stars embroidered in spun silver, she broke into a smile when she saw me. It was Derisa who had taken my oath the night I pledged myself to the Moon Mother, and Derisa who had taken my hand and led me onto the astral during my first Hunt.
I knelt by her side, feeling more tired than I ever had in my life, wishing only for rejuvenation, for some relief from the stress.
She leaned down and touched my shoulder. “Rise.”
I stood, silent, soaking in her radiance. Derisa didn’t just wield magic, she was magic. Her energy spiraled around me, pulling me close as she embraced me. She smelled like lilacs and narcissus, like white gardenias on a summer night, and I reveled in the scent as it washed away the tears on my heart.
“It’s been a long time since we’ve met,” she said, her lips close to my own, her gaze locked on mine.
“I never expected to see you here,” I whispered, unable to look away.
“Neither did I,” she said, then leaned in and pressed her lips against mine, her tongue playing gently over my own. I melted into her embrace, letting go of my aching heart. We were sisters under the same goddess, pledged to the same order, connected by a force far stronger than either of us, and her kiss melted away my tension and sorrow, leaving a luxurious and heady sense of relaxation in its wake. I could smell her fragrance, sense her power, and it made me want to give her anything she might ask of me. After a moment, she slowly pulled back. I tingled, my weariness drained away.
“I’ve brought your priestess robes.” She handed me a suitcase.
I caught my breath. There they were—filmy spider-weave robes that only the priestesses of the Moon Mother were allowed to wear. Sheer to the point of see-through, they sparkled with silver and gold threads running through material the color of royal peacocks: a swirl of blues and purples and greens. The robe consisted of two parts—a kimono over a halter dress with a built-in bra. I lifted the dress out of the valise. Beneath it was a silver belt and a headband of silver and bronze, with a crescent, horns pointing up, atop a round moon.
All my life I’d wanted to be a full-fledged priestess. And now my wish had come true, at a cost paid with blood. So much blood.
Lifting my head, I gazed into Derisa’s eyes. “I had to sacrifice the Black Unicorn’s life to earn this, you know.”
She smiled, kindly this time. “Do you think any priestess was just handed her robes? We all earned them, and earned them the hard way. What you did was not just a sacrifice, Camille. You gave the black phoenix his rebirth. Even now, he runs free, reborn as a foal the moment you struck him down, to a unicorn within the heart of the Deep. The King is dead. Long live the King.”
And then I fully understood. The cycle was more than metaphorical. The Lord of the Dahns had to die in order to be reborn. He’d been growing weak and a weakened King must be sacrificed in order to live again in a younger, stronger body. Trembling, I licked my lips.
“What do I do now? Teach me. I need so much help in the battle we face. There are so many enemies, and we’re starting to lose friends.”
She laughed. “War isn’t easy. War should be bloody. It should cost lives and bring pain—if it doesn’t, it’s too easy to take up arms without good reason. But yes, I bring you instructions. You’ll train for your duties here, Earthside, since there’s no way you can come home for any length of time right now.”
“Train here? Who can teach me what I need to know?” And then a whisper in my heart shook me to the core.
“You know, my dear. You know who your teacher will be.”
“No . . . not Morgaine.”
Derisa gave me a sly smile. “She is a trained priestess and one of the original members of the Coterie of the Moon Mother.”
“But . . . will she teach me? Queen Asteria will be furious—”
“The Moon Mother cares nothing for what the Elfin Queen thinks. You will learn from Morgaine. And you will offer your service to Aeval’s Court; the death magic you are learning needs the power of the Night to be fully realized. You are truly a priestess of the Dark Moon, my dear. Not the light.”
She handed me a book. “Here is your book of rituals and shadows. Show it to Morgaine so she can ascertain what she needs to teach you. And when you are done with your training, you will take your place as the first High Priestess of the Moon Mother that the Earthside realm has seen in thousands of years.” Derisa turned to leave.
Stunned, unable to comprehend what she was actually saying, I was suddenly afraid. What if I botched it? What if I couldn’t meet the Moon Mother’s standards?
She stopped near the door, but did not turn. “Silence your fears. They steal your power. The Moon Mother chose you. That is the only thing you need to know for now. Everything else is immaterial.”
And then she swept out of the room, out of the house, and like a living shadow, vanished into the night.
I entered the bedroom, wired from the meeting with Derisa. My world had been turned upside down so many times in less than a week, and now I faced another milestone: the meeting of my three lovers together, in my bed. And I had no idea what to expect. I just prayed they wouldn’t stage a war over me.
The room was glowing softly and I gasped as I looked around. Candles lit up the room, long tapers of silver and purple and black gracing a dozen candleholders scattered around on the dresser, my vanity, and the end tables. A canopy had been erected over the bed, and from it draped sheer silk drapes, swept back to reveal a shower of rose petals covering the comforter, scenting the room with the fragrance of long-lost summer. Romance at its most seductive. But I hadn’t done this so who . . . ?
A movement from the bathroom caught my attention as Smoky entered the room, wearing a robe as silver as the moon. He gave me a soft smile.
“Like it?”
“Oh yes, it’s beautiful. Did you do this?” Once again, relief swept over me. Smoky was home, with me, and he wasn’t going to leave.
“Not alone,” he said, nodding over my shoulder.
I turned. Morio entered the bedroom behind me, wearing his black kimono embroidered with gold.
“My Camille . . . my lady,” he said, catching my hand up and kissing it. “We thought you could use something to lift your spirits.”
Grateful, I ducked my head. “It’s working. Thank you.”
“It was actually Trillian’s idea,” Smoky said, and Trillian stepped into the room, wearing a crimson velvet smoking robe.
“Trillian?” My voice caught. I’d been worried about this moment—how they’d adjust when we were all together. How I’d handle the potential land mines.
He stepped forward and stroked my cheek. “It occurred to me that, since I’m going to have to share you, and since I’m going to be your alpha husband, we’d better learn how to work together. At least in the bedroom.” Trillian’s lip curled into that arrogant smirk I loved so much, but behind it was an offer that I knew was costing him.
I stood in silence in the center of my triad of lovers, looking from one to the other. They stared back, silent and waiting. My lovers. The men of my heart, who completed me, who accepted my strengths and my flaws, my passion and my tears. Who would fight beside me till the death in our war against the demons.
Slowly, I began to undress, one button, one tie, one inch at a time, until I stepped out of my clothes and tossed them to the side. I straightened my shoulders, standing naked before them, the tattoos on my shoulder blades glimmering in the light. The energy of the Moon Mother flowed through me, but from her dark mother phase, bloody and hidden and passionate and magical, death and sex stalking in shadows.
I moved lightly toward Trillian and he lifted his hand to caress my breasts as I stood before him, not touching him, simply letting him touch me. And then, he lowered his hand and gazed into my eyes.
“What is your will, my love? This is your night. We are your servants.”
I pulled him to me and kissed him deeply, my lips hungry for his. As his arms slid around me I reached up and brushed the robe away from his shoulders. He let go of me long enough for the cloth to fall and I stepped back, looking at him from head to toe, slowly, drinking in the site of my glorious Svartan. Rock-hard abs, toned biceps, skin as smooth as silk and glowing dark under the amber candlelight. His eyes glittered—the blue of frozen lakes.
“You are my alpha, my fire and passion, always and forever,” I said, and he inclined his head.
Turning, I moved to Smoky. Two strands of his hair rose to play with my neck, my lips, my hair. I breathed his fragrance, the scent of dragon, the scent of power, the scent of fire, and then I opened my arms and his hair boosted me up. I kissed him, eye level, then slid his robe off his shoulders.
He lowered me back to the floor, stark, pale beyond pale in the glow of the night, tall and strong and rigidly hungry.
“You are my dragon lord, and protector,” I whispered.
And then, I moved to stand before Morio, and he reached out—not with his hands—but with a cord of energy that swirled in ribbons around me, tingling as it fluttered over my thighs, my stomach, the curve of my hips. I stepped forward, cupping his chin in my hand, bringing his lips down to mine where I sank deep into the energy that was his demon nature. His kimono opened and drifted lightly to the side.
“You are my consort, my priest under the Moon Mother, my dark demon,” I said, and he knelt before me and kissed my stomach, just below my navel.
I backed away, looking at the three of them as they waited for my command. This was our night to find our united rhythm. Our night to find our place within this relationship that had expanded beyond what I ever expected to have. It was at that moment that I realized: This was it. These men were with me to the end, to whatever end we came to. They were my lovers and my loves. Their heartbeats echoed my own, and in our communion, we made up a powerful force. Perhaps the outside world didn’t understand, but that didn’t matter. In my heart, I loved each one just as much as the others, and they accepted that I had equal love for all three. And that was enough. No one else’s permission or approval mattered.