Silas laughed. “Didn't those dogs warn you not to leave their ward?”
“Fuck!” I exclaimed louder.
“Yes, you are fucked,” Silas said. “And so are they. I know the hounds are attacking tonight, but they will not get to you this time. Or me, for that matter. I've warded this room.”
“Why? Don't you want to use me against them?” Then I rolled my eyes. “Forget I said that.”
“You're amusing. I didn't know that you had a sense of humor, Indigo.”
“We met at a rough point in my life,” I said dryly.
Silas chortled. “Oh, yes, you're hilarious. Good. You shall amuse me while we watch the battle. And yes, I will use you against the hounds if necessary. But I want to see what my army is capable of first. I've been training them.” He went to the window where two chairs waited. “Please.” He waved at the second seat.
I didn't like the way Silas said he'd been training his minions. What did that mean? Had he learned of weaknesses that I didn't know about?
“Look at you.” Silas shook his head. “You're rattling your brain, trying to figure out why I think I have the upper hand. Well, you may not have given me anything helpful with your half-assed attempt at spying, but I've dealt with a Cerberus before, and I learn fast.” He shifted his stare back outside.
But the hounds weren't planning a frontal attack. So, when the shouting finally started, it came from inside the building. This didn't faze Silas. He merely lifted a brow at me—I was still standing—and got up. He passed me to go to the bedroom door and opened it. Leaning against the frame, he crossed his arms and peered down the hall.
The sound of gunfire came, then growling. The house shook. I backed away from Silas. With every faith in my mates' abilities, I knew it would come down to me. Silas would use me as Michael had—to force my mates to stand down. Or worse. What if he made them exchange themselves for me? Would they do it? Probably.
The question was; what could I do to stop it?
I searched the room for a weapon, anything to bash over Silas's head. But even if I found something, I didn't like my oddsof sneaking up on him. His position made it impossible. He'd see me coming. I'd have to throw something at him. And if it didn't hit him hard enough or in the right place, it would be useless.
What to do?
That's when I remembered what Hades had said. It had been so casual, tossed at me like an afterthought, but the more I replayed it in my head, the more I thought it had been the entire reason for his visit.
As mate to one of my Cerberuses, you now may summon me,his voice echoed through my mind.Summon me.It sounded more like an order than an offer.
I took a deep breath and whispered, “Hades, I summon you.”
“I knew I could count on you,” Hades immediately replied.
I would have said something, but he was already rushing across the room. Silas saw him coming, just as he would have seen me, but he barely had time to straighten out of his lean before the God of the Underworld was upon him.
“Got you, you motherfucker!” Hades snarled as he grabbed Silas by the throat. “You threatened the life of a Cerberus mate.” Hades grinned. “That gave her the right to summon me for help. Now, I'm taking you to Olympus.”
Silas screeched and fought through Hades's speech, but somehow all that ruckus he was making didn't dampen the resonance of Hades's voice. I heard every word, loud and clear. I smiled, relieved that I had done the right thing and helped to end this whole fucked up mess.
Hades lifted Silas off his feet. The man looked like a toddler compared to the Lord of the Underworld. A shimmer encased them. Hades wasn't taking any chances with Silas. No long speeches or stupid crap like that. He was taking Silas off the Earth immediately.
Just before they vanished, right when I was certain we had won, Silas exploded. I mean, he didn't explode like a bomb, but light burst out of him, and he went flying backward, into the hallway. Hades cursed, eyes squinting, and held up an arm to block the light as he gave chase. I hurried forward just in time to see Silas glare at Hades, flip him off, and then vanish.
“Motherfucker!” Hades roared.
With that one word, the entire house shook. Maybe the entire world. Silence followed, hanging on for several seconds, and then came the sound of howling. The hounds knew their master's voice. And what his tone meant. Thundering footsteps came. No, not footsteps—paw steps. It was the sound of clawed feet hitting the hardwood.
Hades stared down the corridor, his expression gone violent. “Tell me you at least got Michael.”
I looked at my mates. All three of them were there, but only Garret and Gideon were in man form—naked but half covered in weapon straps. It was the sexiest thing I've ever seen. But I couldn't appreciate it amid a god's fury.
All right, I may have appreciated it a little.
Gage, in hound form, yipped.
Hades, who evidently understood dog-speak, roared, “Son of a bitch!”
