“And if we stay here, we’ll be a sitting target,” Jono argued.
“You’ll be alive.”
“I need Patrick to perform the blood rite in order to locate Ethan. If staying in one place ensures his arrival through the veil, then we will hold the ground here until Cú Chulainn returns with him.” Ashanti gave Hermes a contemplative look that spoke of murder. “You will guide Cú Chulainn through the veil.”
Hermes let out a put-upon sigh. “If I must.”
Gerard scowled. “I know my way through the veil.”
“Hermes knows it better. He’s traveled its breadth more than you over the centuries. Take the help,” Ashanti ordered.
After a fraught few seconds, Gerard inclined his head in her direction. “Very well.”
“Brilliant, but Sage is at Bellevue with Wade and Marek. I’m not leaving them there to face this alone,” Jono said.
Ashanti arched an eyebrow. “Then you should have brought them here when the veil first started tearing over this island. You need more than who you have with you here to make it that far south. Nearby packs will not be enough. You, however, are a target because of your connection to Patrick. Stay here and act like bait so Cú Chulainn has an easier time through the veil. Defending a location you know is easier than one you do not.”
Jono clenched his jaw, the need to shift making his skin itch. He glared at Hermes, the god not fazed at all by the intensity of his anger. “You’re a messenger god, yeah? Send a message to all the bloody gods in your heavens and tell them to get their arses here after you take Gerard to Salem.”
“What makes you think they aren’t on their way?” Hermes asked.
Jono would believe it when he saw it.
“We’re wasting time arguing. My team and I are leaving,” Gerard said, cutting through their raised voices.
Jono looked over at the assembled Hellraisers, hating that he had to stay behind. He wanted badly to find Patrick, but if he left New York City, something told him he’d never find his way back. They’d gone through too much to give up their territory now.
He gave Gerard a sharp nod. “Bring Patrick back.”
“You bet your English ass we will.”
The Hellraisers queued up, each person grabbing the shoulder strap of the person in front of them. Their sorcerer took up the rear, magic gathered in his free hand, while Hermes went to stand in front of Gerard. Keith checked over his shoulder that everyone was ready before grabbing Gerard’s vest and giving it a hard yank.
“Ready to move out,” Keith said.
Jono went to the sofa where Eloise still sat and offered her his hand. “Time to go.”
She took it after a small hesitation, getting to her feet with his help. “I’ll make sure my family’s wards are taken down when we get to Salem. Ethan won’t be able to get to the nexus if they’re gone and the SOA has theirs up.”
“Good luck,” Jono said as he escorted her over to Gerard.
“Ma’am,” Gerard said, offering her his elbow. “Let’s get you home.”
Eloise slipped her arm around his and held on so tight her knuckles went white. For all the fear that Jono could smell coming off her, she put on a decently determined face.
Jono looked at Gerard, hesitating only a moment before he thrust Patrick’s dagger in the god’s direction. “Bring this back to him.”
Gerard took the dagger with gloved fingers. “I’ll make sure he gets it.”
“Ready?” Hermes asked with a smile on his face.
The messenger god didn’t wait for an answer, reaching out for the air in front of him with both hands. He ripped it open, the gray fog of the veil spilling into the living room. He pushed it wider with an ease Jono knew wasn’t normal.
“Stay close and don’t let go,” Gerard ordered.
Hermes went through first, Gerard right on his heels with Eloise held protectively against his side. The Hellraisers followed him into the veil and whatever waited for them beyond. The tear sealed shut behind the last man, but the coldness remained, along with the threat waiting for them on the street.
“We take this fight block by block when Patrick gets here like we planned,” Nadine said as she turned toward the door. “Until then, we hold this one.”
