Before Talon could pull him off Valerius, Zarek got in a number of solid punches and one last kick to the Roman's ribs as Talon hauled him up.
Just as Acheron had said, Zarek's face showed every blow he had given to Valerius. His nose and lips were bleeding profusely. Zarek didn't seem to notice and if he did, the satisfied gleam in his black eyes said the ex-Roman slave thought it well worth the cost.
Valerius was only slightly more subdued as he regained his feet. "You should be beaten for that."
Talon tightened his hold on Zarek.
Angrily, Zarek shoved him away. "Get your fucking hands off me, Celt." Then he turned back to Valerius. "Try beating me, you sorry piece of shit, and I'll force-feed you that black heart of yours."
"Enough!" Acheron roared. "Another word from either one of you, and I swear I'll rip both your hearts out."
Valerius wiped the blood from his lips.
Zarek raked his hand across his face, removing the blood, while he glared murderously at Valerius.
Acheron was a man of infinite patience and Talon had never seen Acheron exasperated before. But he saw it now.
Acheron glared at the Dark-Hunters. "Next time I'll just send the three of you e-mails. What was I thinking when I decided to have this meeting?"
Nick spoke up. "Oh, I know. That men who are a couple of thousand years old could actually behave like grownups?"
Zarek elbowed Nick in the stomach.
"Oops," Zarek said to Acheron. "Involuntary arm spasm."
Acheron cursed under his breath. "I swear, Daimons or not, if you don't behave, Z, I'm going to send you to Antarctica and leave you there to rot."
"Ooo," Zarek breathed in a bored tone. "I'm terrified. Those killer penguins and hairy seals are really scary."
Acheron growled a low warning at Zarek.
Talon felt for his frustrated leader. He knew why Acheron had set up this meeting. The Atlantean had wanted to know what would happen when the three of them crossed paths. Better to see how much hostility there was up front and be here to control it than to chance a random meeting where Zarek could beat the snot out of Valerius without someone there to break them up.
Now Acheron knew exactly what he was dealing with and how much space to put between them. Talon had to salute the Atlantean's wisdom. Acheron might be young in appearance, but he was truly ancient in his powers, knowledge, and ability to handle the rogue Dark-Hunters who answered to him.
Acheron passed a look to each of them. "If you can control yourselves for five minutes, we need to divide up the city. Since I'm the only one able to take the cemeteries, I'll grab those. Valerius, I want you in the garden and business districts, Zarek and Talon can take the Quarter. On Mardi Gras itself, we all need to be in the Vieux Carre no later than nine."
He turned to Nick. "You are on standby. In the event one of us goes down, I need you to mobilize quickly."
"Just one little problem."
"And that is?"
Nick indicated Valerius with his head. "If he goes down, he's on his own."
Zarek smiled. "I knew I liked this kid for a reason."
Nick shot him a disbelieving stare.
"Nick," Acheron said, his voice laced with warning, "your duty is to all of us. Valerius is a Dark-Hunter same as me, Talon, and Zarek."
"I know I swore my oath, but I swore it to protect Kyrian of Thrace and hell will freeze colder than Santa's iceberg before I ever lift even an eyebrow to help the man who tortured and crucified him."
Valerius's eyes blazed.
"That was his grandfather, not him."
Nick pointed a finger at Valerius. "He was there, too, watching it happen, and he did nothing to stop it. I refuse to render aid to someone who could do that." He looked back at Ash. "You, psycho-ass, and Talon, I'll cover, but not him."