“And do you know what exactly their Achilles’ heels are?” Miranda asked, glancing at Vivien as if trying to assess the damage done to our relationship at the same time.
“No, but I know who does,” I said.
20
Vivien
Grim and I pulled into a run-down casino past the Strip. It was one of the countless dives I never thought to take notice of.
Cars littered the parking lot, some likely here since last night or before. This is where the true gamblers went, the ones who showed up day after day with a cup full of quarters and a hunger for that next win that bordered on sickness.
The supernatural war had not yet spilled over onto human turf. But that wouldn’t last much longer if we didn’t do something about it. Grim wove through the lot until he rounded the back of the building. He stopped near the employee entrance by the dumpsters.
The morning sun blazed down, but Grim stepped out of the UV-protected Bugatti and opened my door. If I got out of the car I’d burn to a crisp. Maybe this was his idea of ending a fight.
I crossed my arms over my chest, hunkering down in my seat. “I guess I’ll stay here.” My teeth ground against each other. To say I was pissed about Grim lying to me about being blood bound to another and drugging another god was an understatement.
He tried to insist it was the olden days or some bullshit. That the fate of humanity relied on him, and it solved a violent altercation. But I had been drugged the same way, and my life had been ruined.
An unwanted voice popped up in my mind.
Has it been ruined? Or have you gone from being alone to having Grim, who has loved you like no other? Not to mention you have friends who literally travel to the ends of the earth with you.
I swatted the thoughts away like the irritating irrelevant bugs they were. There was absolutely no way I was cool with this behavior. I didn’t care if it was five thousand-years ago, he should never have drugged a woman. Even if it was to save the world a rocking, bloody fight, and keep countless humans safe from her unending hunger.
Okay, maybe he had a point, but I was still too damn human, and proud of it, to accept this bullshit.
Grim held out a hand for me. Did he mean to pull me out into the daylight so I’d burn up? His power flared out in shadow that bent over his head to the car, creating an extensive and godly umbrella. The death mask flickered across his face, reminding me of his unstable state.
My mouth twisted in displeasure, though I took his hand and let him lead me out, under his faux shade.
“Best to stay close,” he murmured, pulling me to him. “I don’t want you getting singed by the sun.” His deep amber eyes sparked with gold flecks of barely restrained power. The silent plea there was unmistakable. He wanted me to understand, to forgive.
I hated the way my body betrayed me as I pressed against him. He still hadn’t bothered to button up that black shirt and the urge to slip my hand under it to skim down his sculpted abdomen was strong. I fisted my fingers instead.
I loved him. There was no taking that back now. But I feared the path before us.
Instead of parking through the front doors of the casino, Grim had taken us around to the employee entrance at the rear. He easily opened the lock, slipping in a bit of dark mist into the keyhole until it clicked. The godly shade dropped once the door closed behind me, as there were no windows. I’d expected some fantastic bizarro secret waiting inside. Instead, I found exactly what one would expect. A bunch of banged-up orange lockers, and a paper-covered desk under a white board outlining everyone’s shift schedule. The place was empty, as everyone was likely working on the casino floor, leaving just us in the back room.
Grim regarded the numbers on the lockers before stopping in front of locker sixteen. He ripped the lock off it with a screech of metal before opening the door. I peered over his shoulder. Hot damn, it was a secret entrance down a dark tunnel.
Therewas the bizarro I’d been waiting for.
Before we entered, Grim turned to me. “Let me do the talking.”
“No,” I shot back on autopilot.
“Vivien.” He sighed. “This is a tricky situation, and I need you to be on my side if we go down there. I can’t focus if I’m fighting from all sides. Apep is incredibly dangerous, and bringing you along is a tremendously bad idea. I expect we will see disturbing, dark things in his lair. Things that will provoke you. And I know even if I tried to leave you behind, you would follow me down anyway.”
“Damn right I would,” I said with a nod.
“Remember what we are here for. Do not antagonize or attack him. We need him for information. He’s the only one who knows Galina and Sekhmet’s secretum mortis. They battled long ago and after Galina sent him back to the cradle, he slithered out many centuries later but remained under the radar. I doubt even she knows he has returned to this realm. I suspect he has taken precautions and gathered information against Galina to make sure she could not defeat him again. He’s our only chance to stop Galina and Sekhmet from turning more people and making an unstoppable army. You must remember that above all else.”
I stuck a hand on my hip. “I’ve faced scumbags before, Grim. It’s like you think I’ll lose my shit at the first sign of trouble.”
His eyes searched mine for a moment. “I trust you, Vivien. More than anyone. Please trust me.”
The tiny men running my brain raced to meet.
