“What doesthatmean?” Orion couldn’t stop looking at the tiny black dot on the back of her neck.Shit.Had her mother done that to her? Or had it been the possessed lycans and ghost ghouls, or whatever they were? He needed Macy’s help. Or Mormo’s. Maybe Hecate’s?
Morpheus cocked his head. “Sorry, boy-o. Gotta motor.” He vanished.
“Bastard.” Orion gathered Kaia to him, concerned. And then the strangest thing happened. The dot disappeared, and he blinked up at his ceiling, now lying flat on his back next to Kaia, who remained asleep.
Careful, so as not to wake her, he shifted her head and lifted her hair. And breathed a sigh of relief to see nothing marring her skin. He lay back beside her and watched her eyes open. No blue in their depths, just a deep, dark brown that looked black, her eyes shadowed by thick lashes, her lips the richest rose.
“Orion?” she whispered then struck him right in the feels with a smile that grew. “Orion.” She sighed, cupped his cheek, then went back to sleep.
My mate.He heard her say and jumped out of bed, worried she’d bewitched him somehow.
For a second there, he’d almost said something schmaltzy, near poetic about the moonlike glow of her skin, or the bloode-red kiss of her lips.
“Shit.” He waited as he watched her, prepared for some other weirdness. When nothing happened, he left the room, relocked it, and ran into Hecate. It was all he could do to contain a tiny jump of surprise.
She looked up at him, small in this incarnation. “Have you seen Kraft with our prisoner?”
“He was downstairs playingMortal Kombatwith the guy.”
“Really? Because he’s not there now, and Varu wants a word with the lycan.”
Orion shrugged. “No idea.”
Hecate stared at him. More like through him, but whatever.
“I sense a water mage about.” She smiled. “Is Kaia here?”
Orion cleared his throat and glared down at the nosy goddess. “She’s resting.”
“Oh, good. When she wakes, bring her to me in the basement, if you would.” She took his hand in hers. “Hmm. What’s this? A smudge, I think.” She rubbed the exact spot where the possessed lycan had bitten him earlier. Then she dropped his hand and turned to go.
“Hecate?”
“Yes?”
“Can a magir or human be tagged by a demon? Sold without knowing it?”
“Of course. It’s only too common in the slave markets, in particular in Galla-Ahtma, a stone’s throw from Irkalla.”
“Huh?”
“The Mesopotamian underworld, also known as Kur.” She frowned. “Pazuzu has been known to frequent such places.”
“The same demon Sabine’s been messing with,” he murmured.
“That’s just an example. Heck, if you run into the wrong person, you can come back from Pike Place Market with a demon tag.” She snorted. “Steer clear of the fish market if you’re smart.” She laughed. “I’m kidding.” She continued to chuckle at her own joke, which Orion didn’t find at all funny. “Did you have something else you needed?”
“What? No. I’m good.” He took a step back. “I’ll bring Kaia when she’s awake.”
“Do that.” She left.
Orion didn’t know what to do. Hecate didn’t seem bothered by his hand, and he’d been dreaming that bit about Morpheus and Kaia’s demon mark. But it couldn’t be a coincidence that Hecate mentioned Pazuzu and Galla-Ahtma in the same breath.
He heard Kaia stirring and let himself back into his room.
Unfortunately, she’d sat up, the covers pooled around her waist.
She didn’t seem to realize he’d put her to bed without her clothes.
