Arianna Rose: The Gates of Hell (Part 5) (18 page)

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btaining a reaction that bordered on pleasure after smacking her backside, he decided to up the ante.  Grabbing a fistful of long, flaxen hair, he yanked, wrenching her head back so that her spine arched painfully. A sound that was much more than a flimsy pant echoed from deep inside her, a primal, aggressive place.  Throaty and loud, she groaned excitedly. 

Darius, feeling
a thrill race through his veins, extracted his throbbing shaft from Lilith and spun her around to face him.  A savage glint gleamed in her icy gaze.  He gripped her slim face in one hand then slid his thumb close to her mouth.  She nipped it teasingly as her hand guided his manhood toward her juncture.  Without warning, however, the playful nibbling became a bite that broke skin.  Sharp canines and incisors tore through his skin in a fleeting nova of pain.  Blood trickled from the small punctures and trickled from the corner of her mouth, staining her lips crimson as they parted in an inscrutable smirk.  He jerked his hand from her face cocked it back and smacked her across her cheek. 

Untamed passion, violent and dangerous, shimmered in the
cobalt depths of her eyes.  She wrapped both arms around his neck and leaped up, wrapping her legs around his waist and impaling herself on his waiting erection. 

“Yes,” she purred sexily through lips swollen and bloodied. 

Swelling made her cheekbone puffy and blood streaked her face.  Nevertheless, Darius found the moment in which he existed to be the most intense he’d ever experienced.  Pleasure and pain mingled and swirled before they melded into a single, fused entity. 

Balancing her bottom with one hand as he drove himself in and out of her forcefully, he used his free hand to grip her throat, the pressure he exerted increasing incrementally the more animated she became. 

Lilith dug her fingernails into the back of his neck, freeing one hand to slap and scratch his arms, chest and shoulders.  She was a feral jungle cat, wild and beautiful.  She rode his shaft, rolling her hips as she crushed them against his, clawing and striking him while he firmly clutched her fragile neck in his fingertips. 

Their sweat slickened bodies dueled and clashed, writhing in a ferociously erotic fight for dominance.  They thrashed and screamed in ecstasy in front of the floor-to-ceiling window of his hotel room until their bodies trembled and clamped with pleasure, unrelenting. 
And only when his muscles clenched and his body went stiff and tremors traveled the length of his limbs did he stop and withdraw from her. 

Bruises had already begun to form on her snow-white skin and angry welts ran from the small of her back to
her buttocks and the tops of her thighs.  Reaching out a hand, Darius touched Lilith’s shoulder lightly, turning her to face him.  He’d expected to see rosy cheeks from exertion, lips and chest flushed from climaxing, but she was as pale and pristine as he’d found her, minus the marks on her face, backside and wrists. 

Her expression was blank, her cobalt eyes cold.  With her hands at her sides and shoulders thrown back, she still managed to look regal despite being completely naked and standing before a wall of glass in front of which she’d just been ravaged. 

“My lord,” she nodded coolly and maintained penetrating eye contact.

“Lilith,” he replied with a half-cocked smirk.  He then swept his arm out to one side, gesturing that she was free to go. 

Taking his cue, Lilith strode away rather majestically to where her robe waited on the floor.  She knelt and picked it up then disappeared from sight.

Darius was left alone.  His body still buzzed with exhilaration, a calm shot of relaxation tempering it.  With his mind
and body cleared, he was able to stare out at the bustling city once again.  And as soon as he did, three locations appeared in his mind’s eye, all with landmarks, and all vivid and crystal-clear as if he were seeing them in reality.  The gateways waited beyond the landmarks. 

A broad smile spread across Darius’ face.  His final destinations lie ahead, just within his grasp. 

He strolled with unhurried, deliberate steps away from the windows, away from the city-meets-woodland vista, toward his bedroom, toward his future.  In the coming days, all three portals would be opened, and the world would be his.

Chapter 14

After returning to the compound with Madame Dafeenah and Desmond, Arianna went directly to Briathos’ private chamber.  She stood just beyond the threshold of the room.  The door was ajar and she peeked inside.  Seated opposite Sorath and Leo, Briathos was listening intently to something Leo was saying.  The three elders were deep in conversation, leaning in toward one another as they spoke in hushed tones.  Arianna was reluctant to interrupt and introduce them to the person she’d once scoffed at and derided as nothing more than a carnival swindler.  But she knew she must.  Time was scarce.  Besides, her opinion had changed dramatically in the hours since she’d been sent to find her, since she’d had an outburst that bordered on disrespectful.  Madame Dafeenah had proven herself to be both gifted and invaluable.  She’d saved Arianna and Desmond’s lives. 

Taking a deep breath and a cursory glance at Madame Dafeenah and Desmond, Arianna cleared her throat and lightly knocked on the partially open door.  Briathos, Leo and Sorath’s talk ceased and the men looked in her direction.  She advanced a single tentative step. 
Desmond hung back and stood sentinel at the door, as if somehow intuiting he wouldn’t be there long.  He clipped his head toward the men in greeting and they returned the motion.

Briathos waved her in.  “Come in, please,” he said
amiably. 

“Briathos, Leo, Sorath, this is Madame Dafeenah,” Arianna said as soon as they entered the room. 

“Pleased to meet you Madame Dafeenah,” Briathos said and stood when the petite psychic made her way toward him.  Lengths of his white robe billowed and trailed after him ethereally, giving those who looked upon him the impression that he was haloed in the purest of brilliant light.  Smiling warmly and with his entire face, he extended a pale hand to her, his voice radiating from him like a ribbon of sunlight.  “This is Leo and Sorath.” He gestured to the two other senior beings with him.  Both men bowed their heads in acknowledgment.  “You’ll have to forgive me, forgive all of us, if we are hurried in our exchange of pleasantries.  Extraordinarily extenuating circumstances have placed us in a dire position.”

“I understand completely,”
Madame Dafeenah replied.  “And please, call me Dafeenah.  The ‘Madame’ part is solely for the purpose of my role at the carnival, a role I no longer fulfill.”

“Ah, very well then, Dafeenah it is,” Briathos said.
  “I trust that Arianna, the Sola, has apprised you of our need for your unique talents?”

“Yes, she has,” Dafeenah answered.  “And what I saw was . . . hell on Earth.”
  Dafeenah clasped her small hands in front of her and wrung them so tightly her bronze skin blanched at the knuckles. 

“Yes, I imagine it was,”
Briathos said solemnly.  His head was tipped to one side, sympathy at what she had been forced to witness flowing from him like heated molasses.  Then he turned his attention to Arianna.  “Arianna, are you convinced of Dafeenah’s veracity?” he asked her point-blank. 

Arianna’s
gaze darted from Dafeenah to Briathos.  “Yes,” she replied without hesitation.  “Because of her, I was able to thwart an ambush.  She foresaw an attempt on my life by a bunch of Darius’ people.”

Briathos’ translucent blue
gaze turned to frost.  “An assassination attempt,” he rasped with anger she didn’t think possible for a being as serene as he to possess.  Fair fingers balled into fists at his sides before releasing gradually.  He closed his eyes and composed himself.  “As you can see, Dafeenah, we are in need of your help,” he said, his entire demeanor returning to one of placidity and calm. 

“I understand and
will do whatever you ask of me,” Dafeenah said.  She tipped her chin and nodded.  “My people, the Roma people, know of the Sola and of your cause.” 

“Excellent. 
Then you know what we are up against,” he said gravely and trained his sage gaze on her.  Several beats passed before he resumed speaking.  “Many of our kind have arrived, claiming they want to help.  They know the Sola is here.”

“What?” Arianna asked and could not keep the shock from her voice.  “
Beings of unknown allegiance are here now?  I can’t believe it!  None of us are safe.  How did they find out?”  The questions sprayed from her like gunfire, her eyes searching the faces of Leo and Sorath before settling on Briathos.

Each time her location had been revealed, those closest to her
had died.  And now random witches and warlocks were on the grounds of the compound, the one safe haven stronghold she and the others could lay claim to.  Their defenses had been infiltrated, their flimsy sense of safety compromised.  More would lose their lives as so many had already.  She couldn’t live through more loss, more death.  She could not survive losing Desmond. 

“We spread the word,” Briathos interrupted her frantic thoughts and swept his arm out to one side, motioning to Sorath and Leo.  “We told a select few, those we knew would share the information with their coven.”

“We did it in a controlled manner to rally support,” Leo chimed in.

“We need reinforcements.  Our limited numbe
rs have dwindled,” Sorath added.  His reminder of the trainees, friends and lifelong companions they’d lost since her arrival landed like a punch to her gut. 

She lowered her head, shame coloring her cheeks. 

As if sensing her feeling of disgrace, Briathos said, “All those who’ve fallen were destined to give their lives for this battle, a battle as old as time itself, and they will be honored when it is finally over.  That’s where you come in, Dafeenah.” He turned to face the slip of a woman covered from her neck to her ankles in a black dress. “What we need from you is to meet the new guests.”

Guests,
Arianna thought,
Potential assassins
is more like it. 

Briathos, as if he’d heard her thoughts, gave her a stern, almost fatherly look of disappointment.  Arianna droppe
d her gaze to her feet and shifted uncomfortably.  “Desmond, assemble our new guests, as well as the trainees, please.  We will be along shortly and have them meet Dafeenah.  About how long do you need?”

“Less than ten minutes,” Desmond responded.

Arianna wanted to scream, to cry out, “No!  Don’t send him out there among them!”  The words burned like acid on her tongue, corroding her mouth with need for release.  Trusting the elders about hinging their survival on a carnival psychic had been hard enough, and her initial objections had been unfounded, thankfully.  But Desmond was separate and apart from any situation or circumstance.  He was the soul of all that was good and decent in existence.  The world needed him.  Evil would always crop up.  Like snakes, evil could shed its skin several times, transforming its image one way or another.  But it remained a snake always. Winding and bending its way onto unsuspecting prey with smooth, serpentine stealth before striking suddenly.  Arianna wondered whether Desmond was being sent out to round up a veritable nest of snakes.  All of the new arrivals could be murdering demons sent by Darius. 

Arianna hadn’t realized her unblinking gaze was pinned on Desmond, hadn’t even heard Briathos address her until he said her name louder.

“Arianna, do you hear me?” Briathos asked concernedly. 

Snapping out of her worry-induced trance, Arianna gave a halfhearted “Yes,” just before watching Desmond vanish from sight.

Her chest ached painfully at the empty spot where he’d stood a fraction of a second ago.  She’d lost him before, and in more ways than one.  Her heart could not withstand it again. 

“He’ll be fine,” Briathos’ voice whispered through her brain as faintly as a summer breeze.  Her head snapped in the direction of the sound.  It had come from everywhere, yet nowhere at all.  She looked to Briathos.  His wise eyes twinkled with profound wisdom and mysticism, and righteousness that surpassed the test of time. 
Calm branched from him in gentle swells, reaching her and permeating her wall of apprehension.  The burden of anxiety was lifted, the twinge in her chest alleviated.  A small part of her wanted to ask him how he did that, how he managed to diffuse her angst so easily, but in the deepest recesses of her being she knew the answer already. 

“How do you want me to conduct my reading?” Dafeenah’s throaty voice redirected her attention.  “It must be done without their knowledge, yes?”

“That is correct.  They mustn’t know why you’re here or what you’re doing,” Leo said. 

“Their
energy is transmitted through contact, is it not?” Sorath asked.

“Yes, it is,” Dafeenah answered.  “Skin-to-skin contact works best, but as long as the fabric they’re wearing isn’t made of metal, I should be fine.”

“What about a handshake?  That’s harmless enough, right?” Arianna interjected.  “Meet them, shake their hand and there you go.  You’ve got skin-to-skin contact that gives you a clear picture of what side they’re on.”

“That’s precisely what I was thinking,” Briathos beamed.  “But is a handshake long enough?” he asked the question that sprang into her mind as soon as
she’d blurted out her handshake idea.