Arach lumbered to a halt and half-turned his body to face the deepest fissure in the rear of the cave. “I will meet your champions on one condition, witch. If I best them, ye grant me unlimited freedom to move between all the worlds.”
“Ye already move between the dimensions at will. What are ye truly asking for, Arach?”
Arach chuckled and his grin widened to reveal his rotting fangs. “Unlimited power and ultimate energy for the rest of eternity. Even though I am able to move through any portal I wish, it takes a solid millennia for me to recover once I pass through them. Grant me control over the highest energies so that mine will ne’er be depleted.”
Nothing sounded through the cave beside the familiar dripping sound of the perpetual moisture. Arach shrugged and resumed his slithering gate toward the sunny ledge when the oldCailleachfinally spoke.
“Agreed.”
Chapter
Fifty-Four
Where was she? Torin scanned the winding narrow path leading up to the circle of stones. Resting his hand against the cold rough surface of the nearest obelisk, he closed his eyes and searched.There. Finally.He sensed her comforting warmth headed his way. Exhaling a relieved breath, he focused on the golden sensation reverberating toward him. He could find Emma’s aura in any reality. Her electrifying essence mated with his to perfection. Together, they formed a balanced whole.
A stinging wind nudged against him, chilling a reminder across his flesh. Precious time was running out. They needed to force Arach back through the doorway and close the portal behind him. Forcing open his eyes, Torin trailed his fingers across the rough surface of the ancient, chiseled stone.
Thank the gods, he had convinced Laynie to urge Emma toward a life with him. Uncertainty nagged at the base of his skull like the dull pounding ache he always got after enjoying too much mead. Surely, Emma would agree to cross with him once she received her sister’s blessing. If Laynie had found time togive it. Torin swallowed hard. There was that. There had been so little time.
The whirling breeze roared through the silent sentinels, a mournful whistle warning those who knew the portal stood ajar. Torin tensed at the guttural rumble trembling across the ground. His gut clenched as a low-pitched roar rose above the howling wind. Unsheathing his sword, he widened his stance. The silver scar threading down the side of his face burned a vicious warning through him. Arach neared. The vile beast approached the circle of stones. Only when Arach neared the blessed stones could Torin sense him in the In Between.
A familiar metallic growling rumbled behind him. Keeping his attention fixed on the pair of dark gray spires looming ahead, Torin tightened his grasp on the haft of his sword as Emma’s vehicle bounced into his peripheral vision.
Damn.He ground his teeth as the ground shook again with Arach’s bone-chilling call. The cold sweat of uncertainty streamed down the sides of his face. Could he protect her from the raging serpent? Would Emma remember all she had learned over the past few weeks?
“Torin?” Emma’s call carried to him across the hillside.
Damnú air!Why didn’t the woman reach out with her senses? Did she not remember a thing he had taught her?
A searing rush of super-heated air burst from near the ancient columns. Reaching out with his mind, Torin summoned her.“Come to me, Emma. Focus your energies and hurry to my side with care.”
“What’s wrong?”she said suddenly appearing at his side.
Torin rolled his shoulders, his tension easing a bit. She did remember. She’d heard his instructions and folded space to come to him. “Arach comes. It will take us both to force the vile beast back through the portal. Stand fast by my side. Your survival depends on your doing exactly as I say.”
Emma edged closer while glancing around the ominous stones. Black clouds billowed across the horizon. The storm clouds roiled and jockeyed for position around the stone circle as though fighting for the best seat for the coming show. “Is Arach on the other side right now? If he went back through the portal, why can’t we just destroy it before he returns to this world? Can’t we just close it off before he passes back through it? You’d think he’d know we’re going to seal it so he can’t cross back over and pick up where he left off.” Swiping beads of sweat away from her forehead, she squinted at the stone spires. “And why is it so hot here in front of the center stone? I drove through snow flurries coming up the hill.”
An impatient bellow shook the ground. The Lewisian gneiss sentries shuddered as another heated blast of searing wind exploded from between them.
“Arach does not believe we can close the portal. He is unaware of the power of our joining. Thinks we’re weak and easily bested. He’s also succeeded in locking this particular gateway open to only his home dimension. As long as the portal is permanently aligned with his home, the beast’s energies will not be drained.” Torin nodded at the silent spires growing darker with the gathering clouds. “The lair of his birthplace lies just beyond those stones. Usually, he just wreaks his destruction and then retires to the comfort of his caves along the sea. But when his magic weakens to the point where he can no longer ignore it, he must return to his original lair and recharge among the pits of his origin.” Torin adjusted his grip on the worn haft of his sword and slid his thumb along the shining blade. “Ye will find we canna close this gateway until we overpower Arach. Our joined magics are strong but Arach’s protection spells cast upon the gateway are considerably stronger.” Torin licked his lips and raised his face to better taste the foul wind. “The heated stenchscorching the air is the breath he’s blown to announce his path. He will pass through the stones soon. We must be prepared.”
Torin pulled Emma to him, crushed her against his chest, and breathed in the scent of her hair. Her sweet, familiar essence steadied his mind but also struck fear in his heart. He must protect her. Arach would attack her first. The beast would sense a novice guardian. “Swear to me you will do whatever I ask. Swear to me you will act on my words without a moment’s hesitation.”
Uncertainty flickered in the depths of her eyes. She laid a hand to his cheek, tracing her thumb down the line of his throbbing scar. “I swear.”
Torin swallowed her oath with a kiss. A claiming kiss filled with urgency. He needed the sweetness of her one last time. He would forge into battle with the taste of her on his tongue.
The ground shook all around them. Small stones bounced across the earth like clumped flour rising in a vibrating sieve. A billowing yellow cloud roiled out from between the columns, filling the air with the stench of sulfur and rotting flesh.
Emma swallowed hard and blinked slow deliberate blinks as she backed out of Torin’s embrace. The putrid odor of rotten eggs and decaying meat filled the air, setting her eyes and nose on fire. Covering her mouth with both hands, she struggled not to gag. Whatever Arach was, he reeked. “What does Arach do to his enemies? Kill them with his smell?”
“The stench is nothing compared to the beast himself. Protect yourself with your magic, Emma.”
Blue-white flames burst from the space between the stones as though someone had touched a flint to a blowtorch. They burned the yellow cloud from the air with an explosive whoosh. As the flames ate through the portal and seared the ground, an ear-splitting roar followed. “I smell ye Torin and ye are notalone. I’ve not eaten in several days. Have ye brought me a delicious appetizer as a welcoming gift?”
Torin raised his sword over his head. The blade shimmered and hummed with an eerie white glow. “Aye, Arach. I have brought ye a gift. Come taste the sweetness of my steel.”
Emma wiped her sweating palms on her jeans, catching her breath as she stared at the humming sword. The pitch of the vibration strumming up and down the blade pierced the air like a siren. The wail of the sword sounded so familiar. Where had she heard it before?
