Kellsie frowned, trying to remember it exactly. But it was like waking from a dream and the memory was hard to grasp.
“Do you hear it?” Marko turned with her in his arms until they were facing the valley below. With her newly ramped up hearing she could easily pick out the voices on the wind.
“Who is it?”
“I have no idea, but they gave me the boost of power I needed to save you.” He motioned to the bears and they lumbered on ahead. “Let’s go find out.” They started down the hillside, leaving the circle of death and destruction behind them without a backward glance.
The Lady of the Beasts wanted to smile but knew it was premature. Marko had made it along with the woman, his mate. He was free, his power returned to him. And with that came the return of hers. With each warrior released, the power she’d used to bind him in the curse was returned to her.
Hades was not going to be pleased. This was the second warrior he’d almost had and both had slipped from his grasp. He was going to be out for blood. Hers.
Although he couldn’t stop her, he could put obstacles in her path. If she wasn’t careful she could wander in the bowels of Hell for eternity.
Still, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of pride and the corners of her mouth turned up slightly. Two of her warriors were free.
Her lips tightened as she thought of those lost. She said a prayer for them as she continued on her way. Their sacrifice had given her strength, whether they knew it or not.
She cocked her head to one side as she caught the melodic sound of chanting. Heartened, she started moving toward it, ignoring the searing pain in the soles of her feet as the fiery pathway licked at her limbs.
Hope filled her as the voices grew louder. There was a glimmer of light in the distance. It was faint, but in the pitch black of Hell, it was a beacon in the darkness.
She pushed toward it, ignoring the pain that was her constant companion. The heat grew even more oppressive and reached out to her like phantom hands pulling her backwards. Exhaustion pressed upon her but she kept going, knowing that to stop meant death.
As she reached for the light, she heard a roar behind her.
Hades was coming.
Chapter Nineteen
Marko tightened his fingers around Kellsie’s hand. After what they’d been through it was going to be a long time before he was going to be comfortable letting her out of his sight. She squeezed his fingers and he knew she felt the same way.
They’d come too close to dying. For all intents and purposes she had died. He’d watched her eyes close and the spark of life drift from her body. They hadn’t talked much about it. Not yet. Later when it wasn’t so fresh and raw in both their minds, he would ask her about the experience.
In the meantime, he was content to enjoy the night air with the woman he loved. He shook his head and grinned. If his fellow warriors could only see him now they would laugh their asses off. He’d always been the most aloof of the bunch, content to be by himself while the rest of them had spent time drinking and sleeping with human females all those centuries ago. He’d told them it was a waste of time, but now there was nothing he wouldn’t do to see to his woman’s safety and happiness.
His grin slipped away as he realized that two of his brothers were lost and one was gone over to the enemy camp. Two were still frozen in time in their prison. Only one other was free, alive like him.
Was Roric still with the female who’d freed him?
Marko couldn’t imagine carrying on without Kellsie. But that was him. Roric’s situation might be different. Marko didn’t think there could be another woman as beautiful and brave as his Kellsie. But whoever she was, the woman who’d freed Roric had enabled him to survive and that had to mean she was special in some way.
There was plenty of time now for him to find his fellow warrior. Together they would try to come up with a plan to free his remaining brethren and the Lady from their captivity.
“You’re awfully quiet. Are you okay?” Kellsie stopped beneath a towering fir tree and tugged him closer.
She was chewing on her bottom lip, her precious face filled with worry. He cupped her shoulders in his hands and eased her up onto her toes as he lowered his head. He touched his mouth to hers, delighting in the feel of her soft lips against his, the slight gasp of her breath against his face and the subtle yielding of her mouth as he deepened the kiss.
Marko knew he owed the others, knew he needed to start working on their behalf immediately. But right now, here in this vibrant forest, underneath the glowing moon, he wanted to celebrate life.
Kellsie sank back down on her feet. “Wow.” She brushed a lock of hair from her forehead. “What was that for?”
“I love you.” The words were stark. He had no other fancy words to add to them. He wasn’t a poet. He was a warrior. Suddenly he was worried that wouldn’t be enough.
Kellsie threw herself into his arms, holding him close. “I love you too.” She nuzzled against his chest. “I was so afraid I was going to lose you.”
“You were afraid.” He shifted her away from him until he could see her face and glared down at her. “I was terrified. You can never do that to me again,” he growled. The bears glanced over their shoulders but kept moving until they were out of sight. Marko knew they wouldn’t go far. They were helping him to protect Kellsie, and he appreciated his brothers’ concern and assistance.
“Believe me, I don’t plan to.” Kellsie shifted her weight from one leg to the other.
Marko frowned. “Are you tired? We should rest.”
She shook her head. “I’m okay.” She held up her hand to forestall further comment. “Yes, I’m tired. It must be almost two in the morning, but I’d rather keep going. The quicker we can get home the better.”
Marko was concerned about that. What would happen when they got back to the modern world, Kellsie’s world? He was fine in the woods. They were his domain. But she lived in a city, and he’d seen modern cities as the carnival had passed through hundreds of them around the world.
This world was one he didn’t understand.
“I can carry you.” He hoped she’d say yes so he’d have an excuse to have her closer to him. But he knew what her answer would be even before she said it. She was independent and proud.
“I can make it.”
He supposed it was enough that she was letting him carry her pack with her belongings. The sound of voices raised in song drifted past them on a breeze. They’d been moving steadily toward it for quite some time now. He caught Kellsie’s hand in his. “Come. They are calling us.”
They started to walk again. He could feel her gaze on him and glanced at her. “You can understand them.”
He nodded. “All languages are known to me.”
“Cool.” She scrunched up her nose. “Why can’t I understand it?”
Her disgruntled tone almost made him smile. Almost. He was learning. “I don’t know. Maybe in time that will change or perhaps it is one of my powers you didn’t get in the transformation.”
“That’s not fair,” she grumbled, kicking at a pinecone.
Marko grabbed her and spun her around, lifting her high in his arms as his laughter echoed across the land. Kellsie delighted him. She was immortal but she was pissed because she didn’t have all his powers. Was there any wonder he loved her?
She grinned at him sheepishly. “I know. I know. I should be grateful to be alive. And I am.”
He dropped a kiss on her tempting lips and put her back on her feet. “We’ll discover all your abilities in time.”
“I guess I’ve got plenty of that,” she agreed. “My hearing is much more acute and my night vision is tons better than it was.”
They walked along for another while, their feet silent along the mossy trail. “Do you hear them?” he asked.