Sebastian/Aristide (Bayou Heat) (10 page)

Sebastian made a sound of disgust. They’d suspected that the cowardly attacks were being caused by the human disciples, while Shakpi plotted a more direct battle. Now it was obvious that Shakpi was personally responsible.

Obviously the goddess preferred to hide in the shadows and allow her followers to take the risks.

“You’re behind the supposed Pantera attacks,” he muttered.

“It’s so divinely simple.” Chayton shrugged. “A few dead bodies littered around the world and they’re foaming at the mouth to destroy something. The Pantera will be obliterated in a month.”

The cat inside him stirred, gaining strength with every passing second.

Not that he was stupid enough to think he could challenge a goddess.

For now, it was more important he gain any information possible and try to pass it on to Raphael.

“Why am I here?”

Chayton slowly straightened, folding his arms over his chest as he studied Sebastian with that unnervingly evil gaze.

“When my disciples called to say that they had an unconscious Pantera I told them I wanted to speak with you.”

“Why?”

“I intend to savor the death of my sister’s creations, but I will need a few loyal servants.” Chayton’s face remained impassive, but Sebastian could sense the goddess’s smug arrogance.
“I’m offering you the opportunity to serve me.”

Serve the goddess responsible for the death of Pantera? With an effort, Sebastian pushed himself to his feet, the air heating with the force of his fury.

“You can take your offer and—”

“Careful,” the Shaman snapped. “You get one chance before I allow my disciples to play with you.” Chayton glanced toward the door, watching as Derek and Van stepped into the room. “They can be a little…rough.”

Sebastian curled his lips in a disdainful smile. “I’ll walk through the fires of hell before I’d bow to you.”

“Fine.” The power surged through the room, but even as Sebastian prepared for a killing blow, Chayton was heading out the door. “Have fun, boys.”

Momentarily baffled, it took Sebastian a few seconds to understand Shakpi’s abrupt retreat. She might be a goddess, but she was in a mortal body.

She was afraid of a physical confrontation.

That’s why she was hiding behind her disciples.

The realization had barely formed when Van pulled his hand from behind his back to reveal a baseball bat.

“Ready to play, kitty cat?” the thug demanded, strolling forward.

Sebastian shrugged, well aware the idiots didn’t realize his body was swiftly ridding itself of the toxin.

“Do I have a choice?” He made his voice sound as if it was an effort to even speak.

The goons smiled as they rushed forward.

With a fluid speed that no human could hope to match, Sebastian had the baseball bat yanked from Van’s hands and whirling to his left in time to bust Derek’s skull open with one negligent swing. The traitor fell to the floor, his blood pooling on the wooden planks.

Van squeaked in terror, turning to flee.

He managed two steps before Sebastian grabbed him by the neck, dangling him off the ground as he whispered in his ear.

“Where are you going?” he snarled. “We’ve just started to have fun.”

***

Reny kept her head lowered as Lady Cerise led them past the two armed men who stood at high, wrought iron gates and up the seemingly endless driveway. The older woman hadn’t been lying when she said that Reny would never have gotten through the tight security without her.

Still, Reny kept her hand on the trigger of her pistol hidden in the pocket of her jacket as they climbed up the stairs to the columned terrace where even more men were standing guard. She was well aware that she was quite likely walking into a trap.

The only thing that kept her moving forward was the unmistakable awareness that sparked to life deep inside her.

Sebastian was near.

And he was alive.

The knowledge compelled her to remain just steps behind Lady Cerise as they entered the mansion and moved through the foyer into a formal drawing room. And gave her the courage not to flee in panic when she was hit by a pungent, sour stench that assaulted her senses.

With a muttered curse, she stepped around the edge of a large bookcase, hoping to avoid the notice of the slender man with a long, black braid and distinctly Native American features who stepped into the room.

She didn’t have to be told that this wasn’t just a man.

That there was some massive…spirit…contained within the body that she very much feared was the goddess, Shakpi.

She grimaced as a fierce power beat against her, barely resisting the urge to pull out her gun and start firing.

Thankfully the unnerving creature’s attention was locked on Reny’s companion, the narrow face clenched with disapproval.

“Cerise.” The name was said as a curse. “Did I invite you?”

Astonishingly, the older woman managed a dignified bow. Reny was fairly certain she would have peed her pants.

“I wanted to make sure the Pantera arrived.”

“He did.” A cruel smile touched the man’s lips. “My pets are playing with him.”

Reny bit her lip, fear piercing her heart. She didn’t know what they were doing to Sebastian, but she knew it couldn’t be good.

She had to get to him.

“He’s alive?” Lady Cerise asked.

“For now.” The dark eyes that burned with a strange light narrowed. “What do you care? Your attention should be on causing panic among the humans.”

“We have dumped the first body near the police station. It’s already stirring outrage in the media.”

“It’s not fast enough. I…” Reny watched in confusion as the male abruptly dropped to his knees, his hands clutched to his chest. “No.”

Lady Cerise stepped back, her eyes wide with alarm. Obviously this wasn’t a usual occurrence.

“What’s happening?” the voodoo priestess demanded.

Chayton grabbed his head, ignoring Lady Cerise as he tumbled onto his back, the odd power seeming to ebb and flow as he gave a cry of sheer frustration.

“This isn’t possible. I escaped,” he wailed. Then his back arched and he gave another earsplitting cry. “No.”

***

Sebastian was stepping over Van’s motionless body when he caught an unmistakable scent.

Reny.

Oh god, had she been captured?

Still holding the baseball bat, Sebastian raced through the maze of rooms, avoiding the guards who were focused on protecting the house from an outside attack.

Entering the formal drawing room, he easily spotted her standing next to Lady Cerise.

The tightness in his chest eased as his frantic gaze confirmed that she was uninjured. Dropping the bat he rushed forward, wrapping her in his arms as he sucked in a deep breath of her spicy scent.

“Sebastian,” she sighed, pressing her lips to his throat before she pulled back to study his face with a frown. “You’re hurt.”

“It’s nothing.” He dismissed her concern.

She reached up to touch the swelling beneath his eyes. “Nothing?”

“Trust me, I’ll heal.” He studied her pale face. “How did you get here?”

“Not now.” She pulled out of his arms, pointing toward the body in the center of the room. “We have bigger things to worry about.”

Sebastian made a choked sound of shock as he realized that it was Chayton who was lying on the carpet.

“What the hell is going on?” he rasped, sending a suspicious glance toward Lady Cerise. “Did you do this?”

The voodoo priestess shook her head. “I don’t have the power to hurt a goddess.”

Sebastian ignored Reny’s muttered curse as he stepped forward, leaning over the male body that continued to twitch.

“Then what did?”

Chayton’s eyes snapped open, his hand reaching toward Sebastian. “Baby.”

“Did he say baby?” Reny muttered.

Sebastian barely heard her as a red-hot fury blasted through him. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the bastard was talking about Ashe’s baby.

He fell to his knees, wrapping his hands around the man’s neck. “God damn you, Shakpi.”

The dark eyes were oddly pleading as they met Sebastian’s lethal glare. “Chayton,” he rasped. “I’m Chayton.”

“This is a trick,” Lady Cerise warned, but Sebastian suddenly realized that the savage power that had pounded against him earlier was now nothing more than a dull throb.

And even the sour stench had faded.

His hands eased their grip on the man’s throat. “What’s happening?”

Chayton grimaced, as if he were fighting some inner battle. “Shakpi is being weakened by Ashe’s baby.”

Sebastian sucked in a shocked breath. “She gave birth?”

“Not yet, but it’s near.” The man’s voice was thick with pain. “The baby’s magic is spreading.”

A fragile hope began to bloom in the center of Sebastian’s heart. From the second they’d discovered that Ashe was pregnant, they’d prayed that it would mean the return of fertility among the Pantera.

Now it appeared their entire future might depend on the child.

“Can it destroy Shakpi?”

Chayton gave a slow nod. “Yes.”

“Thank the goddess,” Sebastian breathed.

The Shaman reached up to grab Sebastian’s arm, his expression rigid with fear. “No, listen.”

“What?”

“Assassins,” he hissed.

Sebastian frowned, wondering if he’d heard right. “Assassins?”

“They’re coming.”

“For who?”

“The baby.”

Sebastian leaned forward, his hope being replaced by a crushing fear. “Where are they? How do I recognize them?”

Chayton’s hand dropped as his eyes slid shut. With a growl, Sebastian grabbed the man’s shoulders and gave his limp body a shake and then another.

At the same time there was a series of loud pops as the guards came rushing into the room, firing their weapons.

Lady Cerise swiftly turned to flee, while Reny calmly pulled her weapon and began picking off the henchmen one by one.

“Shit.” Rising to his feet, Sebastian moved to shelter Reny with his larger body, steering her toward the French doors as she continued to thin out the herd of charging bad guys. “We have to get out of here.”

“What about Shakpi?” she demanded.

Pushing her out of the house, Sebastian pulled his phone from his pocket and hit speed dial. “I’ll have Lian gather the local hunters to secure the house,” he growled. “They’ll have the place surrounded and the guards disabled before the bastards know what hit them.”

Reny hissed as a bullet flew past her ear. “What about us?”

“We’re going to the Wildlands.”

Reaching the edge of Shakpi’s lair, Reny and Sebastian waited long enough to ensure the property was encircled by Pantera and that neither Shakpi or Lady Cerese had escaped before they were running through the streets of New Orleans.

Sebastian set a punishing pace, forcing Reny to release her natural speed that she’d kept hidden for years. Then, confident she could keep up, he accelerated his stride as they hit the edge of the city and headed toward the bayous.

Not that she was going to complain.

She didn’t fully understand what was going on, but she knew if there was a baby in danger she would run until she dropped in exhaustion to try and save the child.

Concentrating on putting one foot in front of the other, Reny barely noticed the thickening vegetation until she felt a strange tingling rush through her and she came to an abrupt halt.

Oh…god.

She shivered, joy rushing through her as she felt the soggy ground beneath her feet and the early morning sunlight that began to peep through the Spanish moss draped over the surrounding trees.

Breathing deeply, she allowed the scent of rich, black earth and brackish water to fill her with…contentment.

There was no other word.

A delicious warmth pressed against her back as Sebastian wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her against his chest. Leaning down, he spoke directly in her ear.

“What do you think of the Wildlands?”

“Home,” she said, the word unfamiliar. She’d spent the past eight years in places where she never fit in, never felt as if she could ever reveal who she truly was.

“Home,” he growled in approval, his arms tightening around her. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“It…smells right.”

He chuckled, burying his nose into the curve of her neck. “Yes, it does.”

She shivered, leaning against the welcomed strength of his body as she slowly, painfully lowered the shields that she’d kept in place for so long.

At first, she was overwhelmed. Christ. Her senses felt as if they were under assault as she truly experienced the world without a human filter.

Suddenly she could hear the thump of Sebastian’s steady heart and the flap of a heron’s wing overhead. She could catch a thousand scents that could be traced by single strands to the world around her.

The tang of a frog hidden beneath a rotting log. The sweetness from a floating lily. The intoxicating musk from the man behind her.

And then there was the acute sense of the animal that lived deep inside her.

An animal that was suddenly desperate to be free.