Zephyra nodded and let him go even though all she wanted to do was hold him closer to her. Don't get killed. The words hung in her throat as unimaginable pain ripped through her, but she wouldn't say those words. She wouldn't jinx him or let the Fates know how much he meant to her. If she did, they might kill him just for spite. So instead, she clenched her hands and watched him leave the room to join his enemies to fight for their daughter's life.
Come back to me, please.
Stryker paused at the door to take one last look at Zephyra. Calm and composed, she didn't appear to care in the least what happened to him. At least until he saw the way she clenched her fists. A small smile played at the edge of his lips as that warmed every part of his body. "I'll be back, Phyra."
"And you better have our daughter with you."
The smile broke at her use of "our." "I will." Inclining his head to her, he slipped out the door and went to their rendezvous spot in New Orleans. It was the quiet alley on Pere Antione outside of the Ethel Kidd realty offices. In the shadow of the Cathedral, his plan had originally been to unleash his men onto humanity from this very place-give or take a few feet. Now, here he was fighting not only to protect the ones he viewed as food, but to protect his own.
Yeah . . . Fate was ever a capricious viper.
A bright flash made him squint as Acheron appeared before him. Dressed in a long black leather duster, jeans, and a My Chemical Romance t-shirt, the Atlantean's eyes were covered by a pair of opaque sunglasses.
Nick Gautier flashed in a second later. His black clothing was much more reserved. A black button-down shirt and slacks. The only thing that made him stand out was the double bow and arrow mark of Artemis that was branded on his cheek.
Ash broke into an arrogant grin. "So are we going to continue glaring angrily at each other while we pose in our tough stances? Or use our time to work out a plan that hopefully doesn't end with our mutual deaths?"
"I vote for mutual death," Gautier grumbled. "But only after Menyara is safe."
"And Medea," Stryker added. "I want you both to swear that regardless of what happens to me, you won't allow her to die."
"I swear," Ash said.
They looked at Nick.
"She's done me no harm. I'll get her out of there if it's at all possible."
Stryker nodded even though he wanted to gut the man who'd killed his sister. Then again, Satara's plan had been to have Nick rape Ash's fiancee. Instead Nick had stabbed her and taken Ash's woman to safety. In all honesty, he could almost respect Gautier's actions. Had it not been his sister Gautier had killed, he might even have considered them noble.
Still Satara had been his ally for centuries. Even though she'd been crueler and colder than any creature he'd ever known, it didn't change the fact that Stryker had loved her in spite of her faults.
Turning his thoughts to Ash, he folded his arms over his chest. "What do you have planned?"
Before Ash could answer, Kat popped in. Stryker arched a brow at her appearance. Over six feet tall, she bore a striking resemblance to her mother, Artemis, right down to her bright green eyes. But she had Acheron's blond hair and, lucky for them all, his temperament.
Her presence surprised him. "You're bringing your daughter into this?"
Ash shrugged. "She has an interesting ability that I think will make War back down."
"And that is?"
Kat's grin was identical to the one Ash had worn earlier. "I can siphon powers out of the gods."
"Really?" Stryker took a step back from her.
Kat laughed evilly. "You never realized how close to the edge you treaded when you insulted me, did you?"
"Apparently not. So how does this siphon work?"
She wiggled one threatening finger in his direction. "I have to be touching the person . . . Good thing I find you so repulsive I never wanted to do that, eh?"
Stryker rolled his eyes before he turned his attention back to Acheron. "What if we can't get her close enough to War to touch him?"
"I'll take her home," the deeply accented voice came out of the darkness.
Stryker turned to find Kat's husband Sin behind him. Strange, he hadn't heard or felt the Sumerian god's appearance. That spoke volumes about Sin's powers that he could mask them so completely. And it made him feel more confident that they could surprise War and his entourage, too.
Stryker pulled his pocket watch out to check the time. It was fifteen till. "Showtime, folks. Are we ready?"