Gabriel's Hope (#1, Rhyn Eternal) (30 page)

“Deidre, will you do it?” he asked again.

“One percent is a death sentence,” she replied.

“I won’t let you go through it, if I don’t think it’ll work. What would it take for you to trust me enough to take a chance?”

She was pensive again. Gabriel suspected there was nothing on the planet that might make her interested in an option that currently stood at failure rate of ninety nine percent. But he waited for her response.

“If I did, and if it worked …” she started, paused, then continued. “Gabriel, what would eternity be like? I mean for us.”

He was silent, uncertain how to answer.

“I don’t know how you offer me nothing one minute then let me decide the next,” she added, frustrated. “Meanwhile, I’m dying and my world keeps crashing. Tell me something. Please. Give me some reason why one percent and an eternity with you beats out the alternative. Convince me you aren’t telling me we can have a real relationship just so I go through with this procedure you want to try.”

He heard the edge of desperation in her voice. As with the underworld, he’d tried to act in a way he thought was best since meeting her. Wynn’s information –
pleasure kills –
was still an issue. Meanwhile, Wynn’s level of Ancient magic made him almost untraceable. He was able to bypass Gabriel’s death-dealers too easily during his frequent trips to the lake. If he chose to disappear, the plan wasn’t going to work. If Tamer didn’t find the tidbit of history from the time-before-time about forced soul extraction, the plan was never going to have more than a five percent chance of working, even with Wynn.

Gabriel didn’t have time, and Wynn’s assessment that Deidre was starting to deteriorate made Gabriel afraid to give her more than he already had this night. He’d come close to saying too much since arriving at the beach. At the sound of her despair, he wanted nothing more than to reassure her that she was everything he needed – everything he wanted – in the mate he planned to spend eternity with. Beautiful, brave, funny, sweet. The gods couldn’t have molded a more perfect woman.

They had a journey to make together before they were in a functional relationship, but they’d never have that chance, if he didn’t find a way to buy them all time.

He couldn’t risk it. He couldn’t risk her. He’d been trying to walk that fine line all night. He was left feeling dirty, like he was leading her on with enough encouragement to keep her from taking matters into her own hands but not so much that her tumor grew.

“Okay then,” she whispered. “Never mind. Just … hold me.”

Doing the right thing was painful. Gabriel held his tongue. Their connection was strong, its calming affect on her the only comfort he was able to offer.

“Who’s soul is in my head?” she asked.

“We don’t know,” he lied. “Probably an anomaly.”

“Does that happen often?”

“Not that I know of.”

“It’s kinda weird, isn’t it? To have someone else’s soul in your head?”

“Yeah.”

“Do you want me to take the one percent chance?”

“I do,” he replied as evenly as he was able to. “One percent now is better than zero percent in three months.”

“Ugh.”

He waited. She was deliberating silently. At last, she sighed.

“I want to live,” she said, sounding unconvinced. “I think. The idea of this being my new reality terrifies me. Even if … even if
you
don’t want me, I want that chance. I guess if the operation fails, I’ll die anyway, right?”

You have no idea how much I want you.
Aloud, he replied, “Instantly. No pain, no comatose state.”

“Never thought I’d consider that good news.”

Secretly relieved, Gabriel drew a deep breath. He needed her agreement to try, even if they weren’t ready yet. He’d figure something out. He just needed to find the right combination of factors that would allow him to withdraw the soul from her head without killing her. If that meant he took Wynn with him everywhere from here on out to ensure the Immortal didn’t disappear, he’d do it.

If it meant he went to Darkyn and made a deal as a final alternative, he’d do that, too.

“Maybe we can adopt an angel,” she added. “Toby said they need homes. So bizarre.”

“Gods. Let’s get through this before we talk kids,” he said gruffly.

She laughed.

“Trust me?”

“I don’t have much of a choice, if I want to give living a go,” she said.

“Good enough. You ready to go home?”

“Yeah.”

Gabriel stood carefully and pulled her to her feet. She took his hand but didn’t look at him, the odd melancholy stirring his instincts once more. A death-dealer outside her door – or better yet, on her couch – was all that would make him easier about leaving her alone.

He took her home through the shadow world. She released his hand as they walked into the living room. Gabriel watched her walk away, loving how much the clingy dress revealed of her body.

“I’m assigning someone to sleep in the apartment,” he told her firmly.

“Because of demons?”

“More or less.”

Deidre curled up on the couch, eyes thoughtful as she studied him. She was contemplative and calm, sad but not suicidal. Gabriel returned her intent gaze.

“You okay?” he asked, bothered by something he wasn’t able to pinpoint.

“I think so. I’ve lived with the idea of dying for so long, I’m kinda freaked out by the alternative,” she admitted. “It’s a lot to think about.”

“I’ll come by to talk later,” he heard himself saying. “Tomorrow sometime.” During daylight, when he wasn’t fighting the desire to make love to her that grew with the disappearance of the sun.

“I’d like that,” she said with a small smile.

“I’ll send someone over in about half an hour.”

She nodded.

He’d gotten what he wanted from her, but he didn’t feel like he’d won. If anything, Gabriel sensed something was off again. He pushed the thought away and took a portal to the lake near the Immortals’ fortress. It was dark and cool, the forest quiet while the waters before him no longer glowed brightly enough to be seen from the stronghold.

Landon appeared at once, and Gabriel waited for his new second-in-command to join him.

“It’s working!” Landon exclaimed. “The Ancient Andre’s mind magic. He implanted it in the mind of two Immortals. We tested them today. They were able to track the demons attacking schools. The spell lasts twenty four hours, but it works.”

“Excellent,” Gabe replied.

“We’re testing it out on death-dealers tomorrow,” Landon added.

“If we’re able to find the souls before demons, we’ll be back on track.”

“I still can’t find Harmony,” Landon said.

Gabe said nothing, suspecting he knew where the death-dealer was hiding out. He almost felt sorry for her. Darkyn was not a kind master. Why she’d chosen to serve a demon over him… was there any part of her that cared for him? Or had he been a simple source of information for her and Darkyn? He grieved her choice but also believe she got what she deserved for betraying the souls they were all charged with protecting.

“We’ll keep looking,” Landon said.

“Thanks. Let me know how tomorrow goes with Andre’s mind tricks. I’m going to pick up more compasses from Tamer,” Gabe said. “Send Cora to guard my mate. Tell her to sleep on the couch.”

“Got it, boss.”

Souls, demons, Deidre. For the first time since taking on the mantle of Death, Gabriel was hopeful. He had the right people helping him, a mate who reluctantly agreed to his plan to help her, a better understanding of when to break the Code and a plan to repair all that was broken within his domain on the mortal realm.

He’d turned a corner. It was time to pursue his duties relentlessly to continue to build momentum. By this time next week, he’d be back in the underworld. With Deidre in his arms and the souls in the otherworldly lake where they belonged.

For once, things were going in Death’s favor.

Chapter Fourteen

Deidre waited for the portal to close before she rose. She paced and caught sight of her reflection in the windows. For a long moment, she stared. Her insides were shaking, no longer settled by his gentle magic.

She’d told Gabriel she wanted to live. There was no uncertainty about dying. Living promised much more that she’d be unable to control: the Immortal society into which she’d been sucked, a potential boyfriend who still seemed to waffle about whether or not he wanted to be with her, absolutely no sense of normalcy or stability. Did Immortals have jobs? Houses? Pets?

Did it matter, if she was able to live a full life? To turn her bucket list into a to-do list? Her gaze went to the kitchen, and she smiled as she recalled Gabriel putting up her latest find. She wanted a life filled with chili pepper lights.

And a chance with Gabriel.

Her smile faded. He didn’t answer her plea to reassure her some part of him cared for her. She thought him sitting with her so long on the beach was an indication. Why then wasn’t he willing to admit it?

Deidre wiped her face and forced herself to face another possibility. Was she willing to give life a second shot, even if Gabriel wasn’t in the picture and she had no more normal friends after Wynn’s betrayal?

Yes. Maybe.

Still cold from the chilly beach, she went up to her room and changed into jeans and a sweater. Tying comfortable shoes, she drew a deep breath.

“One percent chance my ass,” she muttered. “Not when I have a guarantee from some freakish stranger I met in a dark alley.”

Her confidence faltered. She reminded herself that the man named Darkyn promised to help for free, whichever way she decided to go. She could always double-check and walk away, if he decided not to honor his deal.

Deidre called a portal and stood before it. She breathed deeply several times, nerves and instincts unsettled. She was going to do it. She was going to live - and maybe even share a life with someone like Gabriel. It was terrifying, but she felt invigorated, hopeful.

She strode into the shadow world and stopped.

“Darkyn,” she called, uncertain where he hid out.

“I thought you’d come back.”

Deidre whirled, startled at how quickly he appeared. His slow smile scared her while the penetrating gaze chipped away at more of her resolve.

“I, uh, thought about what you said,” she said.

He clasped his arms behind his back, waiting politely.

“I want to live. But” – she rushed on – “I want to clarify that I’m not going to owe you anything and there’s no weird contract with fine print that says you get to claim my firstborn child or anything.”

“There is one catch.”

“Oh.” Her heart tumbled. “In that case, I’ll just go home.”

“Aren’t you curious?” he asked. “There’s no obligation in knowing what it is. I never offer deals without revealing the terms.”

She hesitated, growing uncomfortable in the clammy in-between place with the scary stranger. Maybe Gabriel’s option was best. If it didn’t work, she’d die while under.

Death wasn’t what she wanted.

Deidre considered how long it took for her to accept her impending death. Did she ever? She’d faced the reality but held out some hope it wasn’t inevitable. In a matter of a couple of days, she not only accepted there was a chance to live, but she’d decided to pursue whatever she had to in order to guarantee it.

Gabriel was right. She wasn’t ready to give up. The logical side of her understood that Darkyn’s offer of fixing her was a better option than dying on the operating table. Her instincts, however, were telling her to run.

Feeling trapped before hearing his terms, her eyes grew misty. Suddenly, she was afraid she’d be tempted to pay whatever price he demanded, no matter how high. He didn’t have the pointed teeth of a demon, which she hoped was indication enough she wasn’t about to make a deal with the devil.

“Yes, I want to know the terms,” she whispered and braced herself for disappointment.

“To save you, I need to remove the tumor Wynn caused to expand in your head.”

She flinched at the painful reminder. Darkyn appeared amused.

“The deal is simple. Your life in exchange for keeping the tumor I remove.”

“That’s it?” she asked, surprised. “I won’t be turned into a vegetable or an animal or anything else weird?”

“You will be as you are now. The only difference is that you will not have a tumor killing you. You will have an eternity with your mate.”

Her chest tightened at the thought. There was no guarantee Gabriel wanted her, but she’d have a chance. After all, he promised that he’d try and let her rewrite the awful terms of their relationship, if she survived.

There was a soul in her tumor. Thus far, no one seemed interested in it, aside from Darkyn. Unable to shake the memory of her interaction with the soul from the lake, she felt protective of the one in her head. She wished she had a moment to talk to Gabriel, the deity charged with protecting the dead, to make sure she wasn’t doing something wrong.

“What will you do to the soul inside?” she ventured. “You won’t hurt it?”

“Absolutely not. I plan on restoring its life as well.”

“Really? Why?”