Forgotten Visions (The Divinities Book 1) (13 page)

Ayden took Kalissa’s
hand and tugged her toward the French doors. She’d noticed his mood change. He wasn’t happy about something. Stopping before the doors, he turned to her with an intense stare. She suddenly felt like a wall had gone up.

“What’s wrong?”

“When were you going to tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“Don’t play innocent with me. You were almost taken!”

Kalissa winched at his harsh tone. “It was no big deal. I’m here. Everything worked out.” She crossed her arms. “Who told you?”

“No one.” He looked out the back doors.

“You picked through my head?”

He turned back to her and shook his head. “Not you.”

“That’s an invasion of privacy.”

“I was concerned. When Khloe purposely evaded me, I knew something had happened.” He reached out to her. She shrank back involuntarily. She couldn’t stop herself. He was angry. Old unwarranted fear rose in her.

He looked at her inquisitively. “I wasn’t going to hurt you.”

“I know,” she whispered, taking a step back.

He moved too fast for her to react and wrapped his arms around her. “I would never harm you.” His tone was soft, caring.

She knew that, but the only experience she’d had with men was Liam. That she remembered anyway. When he got angry, he got forceful and demanding. Ayden was being possessive, and he was upset. So she’d reacted out of reflex; the result of a bad relationship that still haunted her to this day.

A light summer breeze flowed across her arms. Ayden guided her outside, shutting the doors behind them. His fingers slid under her chin, and he lifted her face. She peered into his blue eyes and then he pressed his lips to hers in a soft, quick kiss.

“I’m sorry. I should have told you.”

“Shh. No, I’m sorry. Jacen’s telepathic.”

She looked into his eyes. “Yeah, I know.”

Ayden pulled her tighter against him. She wrapped her arms around his waist. “I’ve never seen someone who can’t shut out the voices before. It’s intense.”

“Is it that bad?” She thought back to when Jacen had read her thoughts in The Wheel’s parking lot. It was rude to just pry into one’s head, but if he couldn’t shut out the voices… He hadn’t been inside her head, she realized.

“I don’t know how he deals with it. It’s non-stop, like a constant chatter.” Ayden gave a slight shudder.

It was a wonder that Jacen hadn’t gone insane. “Did you notice that Lydia and Jacen are bond siblings? Do you think Angelica bound them to help with the voices?”

“It’s possible. But I don’t think it’s working with Lydia’s pregnancy.”

Kalissa agreed.
Magickin
fetuses used a lot of energy to grow and develop. Lydia would be unable to aid her brother in shielding his telepathic ability while she was pregnant.   

“Come on. Let’s go inside before we’re missed.” He leaned in and pressed his lips to hers once more.

She moaned and pulled him tightly to her. “Let’s go inside and be missed.” 

With a devilish smile, he gave her another quick kiss and then led her back into the cabin.

It was two in the
afternoon before they’d gotten set to go to the cave. Melaina agreed with Kalissa about her theory that the Sinew was inside. She said it sounded like her mother to place it there. As for the retrievers, Mel had a hunch that it could be a set of Hecate’s hounds—the Goddess’s animal to call. That meant the hellhounds, as well as all others related to the canine family. It was just one more thing for Kalissa to worry about.

They’d gone over everything multiple times, including the dream-vision that Kalissa had had two nights ago. She hadn’t had a vision since, but she did have memory flashbacks. Bits and pieces of her stolen past were coming back to her. It might be the spell weakening. Melaina had suggested that the spell might wear itself as she spent more time with Ayden.  And the closer she got to him, the harder it became to go to that cave. Nervousness made her jumpy.

Ayden came over to where she stood on the front porch, looking out into the quiet, still forest. He placed his hand on her shoulder. She flinched but leaned back into him. “I’ll be on full alert. I don’t plan to leave now. We are immortal, remember.”

Kalissa breathed in deeply and released the breath slowly. “Yes, I remember.”

“And the vision didn’t tell you who was shot.” He kissed her cheek.

“I know.” She took in another deep breath. This time, it was to draw strength from her element, the air around her. She silently said a prayer and asked the elemental spirits to watch over them.

The others joined Kalissa and Ayden on the porch.

“Ready?” Khloe asked. Kalissa nodded, and together, they stepped off the porch into the forest, walking down the path toward the cave.

When they came to the end of the path, nothing but a solid wall of rock stood in front of them. “It was right here. You can’t move a cave,” Kalissa said, pointing at the wall.

“Whoa, do you feel that?” Khloe asked, stepping up to stand next to Kalissa.

“That’s the Sinew you feel,” Mel replied with a soft laugh. “The cave is here, it’s just hidden.”

“It must be the spell. It’s an illusion spell, hiding the cave from sight.” Now that Kalissa focused, she could also sense it. The memory spell she was under must have placed the events of her dream-vision out of order. Or, like Ayden had said, visions were suggestions of what could happen. They could be changed.

The snap of a twig brought Kalissa’s head up. About a dozen demons stepped out of the tree line in a semi-circle in front of them. These demons were more powerful than the Lackeys they’d fought that morning, yet they weren’t as strong as the Regals—highly ranked, powerful demons that served as the ruler’s personal guards. The creatures that faced them now where Amiddians, the middle-class demons. 

A demon charged Kalissa. She charged back, lowered her shoulder, and ran into him like a linebacker. She was quite surprised that she was able to knock the wind out of him. He fell backwards, landing on his ass. He rolled away from her and stood up. She fell into a crouch. Charging back at her, he managed to get a hit on her that knocked her backwards. Groaning from the pain in her hip as she landed hard, she pushed away the agony and shocked the demon with an energy bolt to get him to back off. As he stumbled back several steps, she conjured a sword. When he came back at her again, she was ready. With one swoop, she swung the sword at the demon. His head fell to the ground and rolled as his body sagged in a heap on the forest floor.

“Duck!”

Kalissa didn’t ask why. She just hit the ground at Jacen’s outburst. When she did, a fireball came whirling over her head and hit the chest of a demon who had come up behind her. The demon let out a pained screech before dissolving into a pile of ash.

Damn,
she scolded herself. She had to pay better attention.

Jace appeared over her and offered her a hand up. She took it, and he pulled her to a stand. “You okay?”

She nodded. “Yeah. Thanks.” She looked over at Ayden, who had just finished off the demon he fought. Fear coursed through her as another demon came out of the tree line. He fixed a stare on Ayden, raising his hands. “No!” she screamed and ran toward Ayden. Glancing back at the newcomer, she saw him raising energy for a deadly blast. In slow motion, she watched helplessly as the demon released the energy bolt at Ayden.

She screamed again, fell to her knees, and covered her eyes with her hands. Then, Lydia cried out. Kalissa raised her head to see Ayden, alive, kneeling on the ground next to Jacen’s convulsing form.

Oh, no,
she thought. Her eyes filled with tears, and she swallowed a lump in her throat. She got up to go to them. 

On her knees next to Lydia, who sobbed uncontrollably over her brother’s body, Kalissa felt completely helpless. She was relieved that Ayden was alive, grateful for Jacen’s sacrifice, but saddened by Lydia’s loss. She didn’t know what to do, so she wrapped an arm around the sobbing witch, drawing her in for comfort. Her heart ached, and tears fell down her cheeks. Jacen’s labored breaths said his chances weren’t good and that he may not live through the night. The energy ball had been a deathblow, meant for Ayden. Why had Jacen stepped in front of it? 

Everything around them fell silent. A flash introduced a large Regal demon. Several curses echoed among the Divinities. The new demon was easily eight feet tall. His skin had a red hue that matched those eerie-as-hell blood-red eyes. His long, straight jet-black hair fell around his shoulders. His dark aura screamed “sadist.”

When he spoke, his voice sent shivers over her skin like a million tiny spiders crawling all over her body. “I see you have called in the children, Mel.”

“You’re stalling, Demetrius,” Melaina said as she walked over to stand in front of the group, taking her place as their Elder.

Kalissa looked at the demon. That didn’t look like the same being she’d seen at her parents’ accident or the crime scene photos Ayden had shown her. No, that demon had looked more human. She wasn’t sure why she was surprised. She knew from the demonology classes her mother had insisted she take in college that most demons were shifters. They could take multiple forms.

“I see I have underestimated you. I will not make that mistake again. Khan has a message for Hecate. He wants the Sinew, and will destroy anyone or anything to get it. You have seventy-two hours to turn over the Sinew.” He gave a sadistic laugh. “Consider yourselves warned.” Then he disappeared, taking the remaining demons with him.

“Or what?” Kalissa heard Ayden ask.

“I’m not sure. Let’s get the Sinew and get out of here,” Melaina said and bent down next to them, reaching out a hand to Lydia. When she took it, Mel nodded toward the cave. “Go. I’ll stay out here with them.”

“Are you all right?” Ayden asked in her ear and kissed her temple. She flinched slightly, not noticing that he’d moved closer to her.

“Yeah. Let’s just get the Sinew and go home.” Kalissa began to stand up, only to have Ayden pick her up and hold her close to his body by her waist. He gave her a quick kiss on the lips before releasing her.

“Do you want me to do the chant and see if it works with only one of us?” Khloe asked with a grave look. Kalissa felt saddened by the tears in Khloe’s eyes.

“Please,” Kalissa said softly.

Khloe took out the piece of paper that had the counterspell on it and recited the words. “By day, by night. Grant the Divine sight.” She called the element of fire to ignite the paper into flames and then ash. Then she called air to carry the ash away, sending it out into the Universe.

A few seconds later, the magical veil over the rock wall dissolved, revealing the entrance to the cave.

Inside the cave, she explored, going off in the opposite direction as the others. Khloe had said she didn’t think that was such a good idea and suggested they stay together. “When did you become the responsible one?” Kalissa had teased her sister, trying to lighten the mood.

“Since we lost one of our own,” she’d replied sourly.

Lo was right. Jacen wouldn’t make it through the night—if he wasn’t gone already. Kalissa’s heart ached for Lydia. She had lost so many loved ones in the past couple of years. It was unfair. A lump lodged in her throat. Memories of the day she’d lost her parents played heavily through her mind. Only Lydia had lost her parents, husband, and now brother. Kalissa could only imagine what she was feeling, or how she’d cope in the coming months.

A deep growl made Kalissa stop in her tracks and surface from her dark musings. A gigantic, two-headed dog came out of an opening she’d been about to check out. It stood over ten feet tall from paw to shoulder. Probably taller, Kalissa decided. The huge, box-shaped heads snarled, revealing long, sharp canines that extended from the upper and lower jaws.

Kalissa walked backward as the black and brown hellhound stalked toward her. She bumped up against Khloe.

Khloe whispered, “Stay still.”

Yeah, easy for you to say,
Kalissa replied in thought. The hellhounds stopped when the giant heads were inches from her face. The heads breathed in deeply, drawing in their scents. Then they sat back on their haunches and began to speak in quick sentences, one head at a time.