Grim paused as if he were debating with himself. Finally, he nodded and snapped his fingers.
Lightning came out of nowhere and splintered a statue in the garden.
Nick’s heart pounded at the sound and explosion. “What did you do?”
“What you asked.”
“I asked for Acheron back. Not for you to …” Nick’s voice trailed off as he saw movement behind Grim.
His breath caught as he saw the Atlantean god stumble out of the debris. Almost seven feet tall, with jet-black hair that held a red stripe, there was no missing Acheron and those biker boots and long leather coat.
“Uncle Uh-Oh!” Kody ran to him.
Coughing and wheezing, Ash smiled as he saw her. “Neramou! What are you doing here?”
“We came to free you.”
“We?”
She motioned to their group.
Acheron gaped. “Nick?”
Nick stepped forward hesitantly. “Yeah. You okay?”
“A little rattled.” Ash wiped the dust off his face. “Someone catch me up.”
Nick didn’t know where to start. Thankfully, Xev didn’t have that problem.
Ash took it all in stride until they got to the part about Grim. His swirling silver eyes turned red. “You’re wanting to join us?”
“I may have made some mistakes.”
“May?” Ash growled.
“Okay, I made some mistakes. But together, we can fix it.”
Acheron let out an evil laugh. “This isn’t a tire that blew on the interstate, old man. You’ve been making mistakes for centuries.”
“I know. But if you think about it, I’m just doing what I’m suppose to be doing. I served Adarian for centuries.”
“You betrayed my father.”
“I betray everyone.”
“Which is why I vote we not have him in our club,” Kody said.
Ash shook his head. “My enemy’s enemy—”
“Exactly what I said!” Nick jumped in, cutting him off.
Acheron ignored him. “My gut says to never trust you. My head wants to give you a chance. But if you betray us …”
“I’m dead.”
Ash nodded. “And remember, I have the powers to do that.”
True. Acheron was a god-killer. He was one of the few beings who could kill a god without disrupting the universe. Kody’s father was another one.
