“Fuck you, you piece of shit,” Michael growled. “I'm doing this to protect myself, not you.”
Silas laughed. “Sure. Whatever you say, Michael.”
Then Silas handed Michael a megaphone. I watched my hand wrap around the handle and then we went to a window.
Silas shouted, “Ceasefire!”
The Host stopped shooting. The hounds did not.
Flicking the megaphone on, Michael lifted it to my mouth and called out in my voice, “Stand down. I'm coming out.”
The gunfire instantly stopped.
Michael tossed the megaphone aside, then held his hand out to one of the Host. “Your gun. Now!”
The man passed us a handgun.
Gun in hand, Michael opened the front door and strode onto the porch.
“Indigo!” Gage cried and jumped out of the truck.
The Hounds of Hades ran for me, but as they did, Michael lifted the gun to my forehead. They jerked to a halt.
“Oh, fuck,” Garret said.
“No,” Gideon growled. “You fucking bastard!”
“Hello, Helena Cerberus,” Michael said. “It's nice to finally meet you, face-to-face, as it were.” Michael chuckled. “Now, I'm assuming you didn't bond with this bitch because if you had, you wouldn't have succumbed to Silas's little spell.”
“Fuck!” Garret shouted.
What spell?I demanded.
Michael didn't answer me. He was too busy taunting the Hounds of Hades with, “You should have seen Indigo's face! Oh, the poor little orphan girl, abandoned yet again. She's got some serious issues. It's fucking hilarious. Silas couldn't have picked a more perfect plan to get her back.” Michael laughed. “It fucked her up so badly that she couldn't decide whether to sink into despair or let the pain consume her. Oh, and the pain! When I'm in her, I can feel it. It's excruciating. Mmmm, so delicious!” He shuddered dramatically. “It's like I'm feelingyourpain. Is that what your bond is like?”
“I am going to tear you out of her and take you straight to Hades himself!” Gage roared as he leapt forward.
But the other two grabbed Gage as Michael laughed scornfully.
“That's right. Listen to your packmates. They know I'll blow this bitch's brains out before you get close enough to grab me. And then I'll just jump back into Jake.” Michael grinned. “Now, as I was saying; I assume you didn't bond with her since you succumbed to that love spell. And if you're not bonded, then Indigo here isn't immortal. She won't survive a gunshot to the head.”
“I'm going to take you to the Underworld just so I can fucking tear you to pieces over and over again, you fucking coward!” Gage shouted as Gideon and Garret continued to hold him back.
All three of them were wearing tactical clothing and draped in ammunition. They looked like something out of an action film. They also looked amazing—muscles bulging beneath their black shirts, expressions fierce, and so fucking masculine that it made my ovaries whimper.
Yes, I was checking them out while a ghost held a gun to my head, and my men went wild with fury. Because they were mine again and the sheer joy and shock of that was enough to make me a little crazy, but in a good way. I don't know exactly what had happened, but it sounded as if they'd been tricked. I'd been tricked too. That blonde waitress wasn't their mate! They hadn't forgotten about me in seconds. It was a spell. And that spell must have worn off because here they were, ready to tear the place down to get me back. They probably wouldn't, but that didn't matter to my heart. It surged with joy and hope.
It was the most romantic moment of my life.
“It looks as if I've finally got the hang of this,” Michael said. “I need to capture a Cerberus mate before she's mated to her hounds, and then I can hold you fuckers off indefinitely!”
“If you hurt her in any way, I will—” Gideon started to say.
“What?” Michael cut him off. “You'll what?” He laughed scornfully as Gideon scowled. “You'll do nothing! You can't fucking touch me now. Even when I'm in Jake, I’ll be standing right beside Indigo. One move and I'll take her. And I don't need a weapon to fuck this bitch up. I can destroy her mind in a heartbeat. Then I'll give her back to you as a mindless toy. Or maybe I'll keep her and let Jake play with her. He's already had a go with her earlier. You should have seen them together. So hot!”
All three hounds roared in fury and pain. I screamed along with them, trying to break through Michael's hold to tell them it wasn't true.
“Now, get the fuck off this property or I will shoot your mate in the head,” Michael said. He leaned forward and drawled,“Indigo is your mate, isn't she? Come on, you can tell me. It's kinda obvious.”
