"I know, Desiderius," she whispered in Spanish. "I know. He must die." She placed a hand on Kyrian's chest as if to keep him still. Not that he could move. The net held him completely immobile. "Must be cut into pieces."
Kyrian tensed as she brought the cleaver down.
It missed him by a hairsbreadth.
"M'ijo," she whispered. Life returned to her eyes a second before they rolled back into her head.
She fell to the floor.
Terrified she was hurt, and panicking over his own vulnerability, Kyrian fought against the net with all his strength. It was no use. It was one of Artemis's nets, and once captured beneath it, any prey was completely trapped.
How in the gods' names could Rosa have gotten hold of it? Not even Desiderius should have had access to it. Only a god or demigod could claim an immortal weapon from its sacred resting place, and Artemis in particular guarded her weapons well.
And how could the Daimon reach out and control Rosa from a bolt-hole? No Daimon was that powerful.
Just what the hell was going on here?
Even though he knew it was futile, Kyrian fought against his confinement. As every minute passed, memories surged through him.
"How does it feel, Commander?" Valerius's voice taunted him from the past. "You are completely under my control. Totally powerless. Defenseless." He could still see the evil smile on the Roman's face, feel the agony of his torture. "I'm going to enjoy watching you squirm for me. Hearing you beg for my mercy."
Kyrian's sight dimmed as he relived every moment. He struggled to breathe. He would not be trapped again. Not like this.
Like a man possessed, he fought the net with every shred of strength he had.
An hour after dark, Nick entered the house first with Amanda and Talon only one step behind.
"Rosa?" Nick shouted, rushing through the kitchen and living room, toward the stairs. "Kyrian?"
No one answered. The eerie silence rang in Amanda's ears as they ran up the stairs toward Kyrian's bedroom. Nick threw open the doors so forcefully that the breeze stirred the bed's sheers.
The room was empty.
Amanda hesitated in the doorway as she surveyed everything. Nothing was out of place, except for the bed's covers.
Yet...
She felt something wrong. Something deep within her stirred her dormant powers and allowed her to connect with Kyrian. She sensed his concern. His fury.
Talon moved to the bed and cursed as he lifted a shimmery, silver web. "This is unbelievable," he snarled, balling it up into his fist.
"What is it?" Amanda asked.
"A diktyon. One of Artemis's nets."
Amanda had absolutely no idea what that was, but she could tell by Talon's face it wasn't good. Nor should it be in Kyrian's bed while Kyrian was nowhere to be found. Panic sliced through her even more ferociously than before. "Why is it here?"
"I have no idea, but if Kyrian was under it, I would say he's been taken by whoever tossed it on top of him." Talon leaned over and picked a cleaver up from the floor.
Amanda's panic increased, and against her will, her powers surged, searching for Kyrian. She hated the thought of letting her psychic abilities have control of her, but she needed to know he was all right. She had to know something.
Closing her eyes, she saw him in a sterile environment. He was worried, but she didn't sense any danger from him. "Try calling his cell phone," she said to Talon.
He gave her a "duh" stare. "I've tried a dozen times."
"Try a dozen and one."
His expression told her he didn't appreciate her commanding tone one iota. "All right," he reluctantly agreed. "What the hell? Futility has its purposes in life." Talon pulled his cell phone out of his jacket pocket and dialed.