Lethal Rider

Thirty-two

Thanatos regained consciousness with Limos crouched in front of him, her violet eyes bright with concern.

“Hey.” She smoothed a wet washcloth over his face, which seemed odd, given that she hadn’t cleaned herself up. “Your head is back on.”

“Back…on?” he croaked.

She winced. “Pestilence tried to decapitate you. And he hacked Ares’s chest wide open and scrambled his organs.”

“How…how is he?”

She shifted so he could look over at their brother, who was sitting up, his back against the blood-soaked couch. He was wearing only cargo pants, and although his chest had mostly healed, the flesh was still knitting together.

“How long…”

“An hour, maybe.”

He frowned. “Our injuries were too severe to heal in only an hour.”

“I know.”

“Someone healed us.”

“Clearly.” Standing, she tossed the cloth aside. “But who?”

Thanatos shoved to his feet, wobbled a little, and threw out his hand to steady himself on Limos’s shoulder. Every muscle, tendon, and joint protested as he went down on his haunches in front of his brother. This was going to suck.

“I owe you an apology,” he blurted before he changed his mind.

Ares’s mouth quirked in a pained smile. “I’m sure you do. But what, specifically, are you wanting to apologize for?”

The smartass. Thanatos swallowed his pride and ’fessed up. “For being so damned pigheaded about trying to repair Reseph’s Seal back when he was trying to kill Cara. I protected him. I defended him. I swore that the only way we’d end Pestilence was if Reseph could come back.” He braced himself for the hardcore part of this apology. He hung his head. “I’m sorry Ares. I’m sorry I didn’t understand why you were so willing to destroy Pestilence. I get it now.” He lifted his gaze, drilling it into Ares so his brother would know how damned serious he was. “He’s fucked with our families and friends, and he’s threatened my woman and my son, and I swear, I will finish him.”

They all exchanged glances, no one uttering a word. But the understanding between them was there. They would give no quarter to Pestilence. There would be no more talk of repairing his Seal. Pestilence would die, because the truth was suddenly very clear.

Reseph was dead.

Thanatos strode into his keep and made a beeline toward the voices in the library, but what he heard stopped him in his tracks as if he’d been roped and hogtied.

“I’m afraid, Decker.” Regan’s voice held a husky note, the way it got when she was upset.

Or aroused.

Logically, Than knew she wasn’t turned on. But still, sharing that intimate tone with Decker didn’t sit well. At all. And where was Kynan? If he were here, Regan and Decker wouldn’t be alone.

“Well, you’re about to have a baby that could prevent the Apocalypse,” the fucker said. “I’m thinking you have reason to be afraid.”

I’m thinking you have reason to be afraid, Than mimicked in his head. Yeah, real mature. So what.

“It’s not that. I mean, yeah, it’s that, but … I didn’t prepare for this baby. I tried not to get attached, but I did, and now I love it. If anything happens to him … so much can go wrong with the birth and with his life, and—”

“Hey,” Decker broke in. “I know this won’t help, but try not to worry. I’m pretty sure you’re going through the same feelings every parent has. You’ll be fine. And you know I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

Thanatos barely held back a growl. He didn’t hold back his fangs from slicing down in preparation for ripping out the human’s throat.

“I know. I’ve always known.” She paused for so long all Than could hear was the thud of his racing pulse in his ears. “I’m sorry if I was ever a bitch to you. I was a bitch to everyone.”

“Sweetheart, no one ever gave you a reason to be nice.” Decker’s voice was low, intimate, and Thanatos saw red. Blood red. Decker’s blood. “The Aegis treated you like an asset, not a person. I’m sorry for that.”

“You and Kynan never did,” she said.

“I can’t speak for Ky, but my mama raised me right.” Decker’s teasing tone was akin to cocking a loaded pistol. Than struggled to keep his trigger from tripping, because killing the human in front of Regan would probably piss her off.

“Thanks, Deck. You’re a good friend.”

Thanatos heard the rustle of clothing, and now seemed like a good time to break up this little party. He strode into the library just as Regan and Decker pulled out of an embrace.

When she saw him, she gasped. “My God, Than, what happened to you?”

Right. He’d forgotten that he was covered in blood and looked like he’d spent a week in a slaughterhouse. “I had a minor confrontation with Pestilence.”

“Minor?” Decker drawled. “You look like you tangled with a gator and lost. You got your supernatural ass kicked, didn’t you.”

The souls in Than’s armor writhed, and with a smirk, he sought out the nastiest one, the spirit of a Cruentus demon he’d killed before he kidnapped Regan. The shadowy thing shot out of his armor and went straight for Decker, but with nothing more than a mental “no,” Than stopped it a foot away from the guy. The demon’s soul screeched in frustration, teeth gnashing.

“Ah, Decker?” Regan said. “Maybe you should go.”

Swallowing hard, Decker didn’t take his eyes off the spirit. “I’ll be outside.” He scooted around the soul and toward the doorway. “Been trying to teach one of those hellhounds how to roll over. The stupid mutt only wants to eat.”

“Be careful,” Thanatos warned—with relish. “He might eat you.”

“You’d like that, wouldn’t you?”

Thanatos smiled and called the soul back. “Yes.”

Decker muttered something about underworld trash as he strode out of the library. As soon as the bastard was gone, Than allowed himself to relax—but not much. He was about to make the hardest decision of his life, and he couldn’t afford to go soft.

“That was a little uncalled for, don’t you think?” Regan scolded.

“No. And where’s Kynan?”

“He’s patrolling outside.” She moved toward him, looking beautiful and perfect and like she belonged here. “Are you okay?”

Steeling himself for what needed to be done, he stepped out of her reach. “I’m fine.”

“Don’t bullshit me. Something’s wrong.”

Very wrong. He wanted to grab her, hold her tight, and make love to her until everything was right. But he’d be using her again, to make himself feel better, and nothing would ever be right again.

“You know, I wondered for so long why my siblings and I were assigned our specific roles. But it all makes sense now. Ares was, and is, a warrior who will never quit fighting. War fits him. Limos is Famine because she’s always been hungry. First for recognition and power, and then for love and acceptance. Reseph … we used to joke that he was Pestilence because he was such a pest, but he’s proven to be a plague on mankind, hasn’t he?”

“And you?”

He paused, unsure how to go down this bumpy highway to hell.

“Is it because you want… you want to die?”

He dropped his gaze, and she stiffened at whatever it was she saw in his eyes. “In a way, I guess I want to see an end to this.”

Her vile curse astonished him, and then she was in his face, taking his hand and settling it on her belly. “Death isn’t all you are, Thanatos. You made this baby. You made life.”

God, his chest ached. “But there’s such a fine line, isn’t there?”

Regan clung to his hand. “Whatever is wrong, let me help you. If you need me to hold you close so the death vibes are muted, or if you need sex … whatever it is, I’ll help.”

Help? Yeah, she would. And he’d be using her. He’d be a bastard user who put his family in danger for his own selfish reasons. It was so tempting to drop to his knees and kiss the swell where his son grew, to feel the life inside and worship the woman who had given it. Instead, he tugged his hand away, took another step back, and made his words, his voice, harsh. Pitiless.

“I’m death, Regan. I can’t allow my son to grow up around it. Around me. And if we fail to kill Pestilence the moment our son is born, he’ll always be in danger. He needs to be hidden from Pestilence. You were right. You won, Aegi. Give the baby to someone who can keep him safe as planned.”

“What?” She looked shell-shocked. “Thanatos, this isn’t about winning. Is that what you think? I mean, it was about doing what The Aegis thought was best, but—”

“And you were right.” Fuck. He wanted to hold her, protect her, but he kept his distance. Barely. “I wasn’t meant for anything but killing. When the baby is born, take him to parents who will raise him properly. And never come back here, Regan. Never.” And then he struck the killing blow. Because he was so fucking good at that. “I don’t want you anymore.”