Page 56 (1/2)
CHAPTER ONE
STRIDER, KEEPER OF THE DEMON of Defeat, burst through the towering front doors of the Budapest fortress he shared with a growing cast of friends—brothers and sisters by circumstance rather than blood, but al the closer for it—
fighting a rush of undeniable pleasure
He’d freaking done it, aining away one of the four godly relics needed to find and destroy Pandora’s box—
and yeah, he was gonna get spanked hard for that—then, after being eaten alive by insects and at one point (cough) walking into a chick’s knife (cough), he’d final y won And damn if he wasn’t ready to celebrate
“I’lory” His voice echoed through the foyer, expectant, eager
No one returned the greeting
StilGrinning, he shifted the unconscious female draped over his shoulder into a more comfortable position More co, as wel as the chick who’d oh, so i hilt of her blade He could hardly wait to tel everyone that he’d done what they hadn’t He’d bagged and tagged her, baby
He cal ed, “Daddy’s home Somebody? Anybody?”
Again, there was no response His grin dul ed a bit
Da pain for days When he won, though…gods, it was al hi him That kind of enthusiasm cal ed for a playerie of female companions lived here, yet no one had waited around to welcoated, monitored and soo?
Didn’t that just figure
But he deserved it, he supposed Seven days had passed since he’d last texted or phoned Technical y, though, that wasn’t his fault He’d been a wee bit preoccupied, ith subduing his bundle of anything but joy And on his last update, he’d been told the danger here had passed and everyone could return, so he’d stopped the I-have-to-kno-everyone’s-doing flurry of cal s
So, fine No biggie The fact that no one wanted to play actual y did him a solid Now he could take care of a little business “Thanks, guys You’re the best Real y” And you can al suck it!
Strider surged forward To console hiined his prisoner’s expression when she woke up and found herself trapped in a four-by-four cage Now that’s the good stuff Then his gaze snagged on his unfarin fel away He stopped abruptly
He’d been gone only a feeeks, and he’d thought most of the others had been, too, but in that tied to turn the run-down monstrosity they cal ed ho stone and mortar, the floor was now bril iant white marble veined with amber
Equal y deteriorated wal s were now vividly polished rosewood
Before, the winding staircase had been cracked; now it glea to the top In the corner, a white velvet-lined chair was pushed against reflective paneling, and beyond that, priceless artifacts—colorful vases, bejeweled trinket boxes and aged spearheads—were perched behind glass cases
None of which had been there before
Al these changes, in less than ain and out at wil
Maybe because those gods were
But maybe…
hi house?
It had happened before
And talk about aard There was no way to explain the cut, bruised and soot-covered baggage he was hauling around Not without a little jail ti would be a real treat, too
Nah, he decided a second later This was the right place
Had to be Along the staircase wal hung a portrait of Sabin, keeper of Doubt Naked Only one person had the bal s to taunt badass Sabin with sooddess of Anarchy and dealer of disorder, who just happened to be engaged to Lucien, keeper of Death Odd pair, if you asked Strider, but no one had, so he’d kept the opinion to himself Besides, better silence than the loss of a favorite appendage Anya didn’t take kindly to anyone second-guessing her About anything
“Yo, Tor Tor,” he shouted now
Torin, the keeper of the demon of Disease Dude never left the fortress He was always here,the ho on his co their
At first, there was no reply, only another echo of his voice, and Strider began to worry Had so catastrophic happened? A total demon wipeout? If so, as he stil here? Or had Kane, keeper of Al Kinds of Bad Shit, had a crappy week and—
Footsteps pounded, closer and closer, and relief flooded hi on a zebra-print rug Strider also didn’t recal seeing before, his white hair shagging around his devil’s face, his green eyes bright as emeralds
“Welco, “You shithead”
“Nice greeting”