To her chagrin, both Jess and Ren started laughing.
Jess pulled her against him. "We do what we've always done. We protect..."
"And we fight," Ren finished. "But only after I have a nap, preferably away from electricity and daylight."
Sasha helped him to his feet. "Come on, Dark-Hunter badass." He looked at Abigail. "I'll take this one if you take yours."
"It's a deal."
She watched as Sasha and Ren limped away from them. Then she turned back to Jess. "Is it over?"
"For now. You've stopped your first apocalypse. You should be proud."
"I'm too tired to be proud."
He laughed. "I know that feeling." He fished his phone out of his pocket and called his Squire.
Abigail stood in silence as she listened to Jess negotiate a ride home for them in something that wouldn't cause him to burst into flames. From what she overheard, Andy wasn't willing to haul them anywhere since he was still mourning the mangling of his Audi.
After a few minutes of asking politely, then threatening his Squire with bodily harm, Jess hung up the phone. "Andy will be here shortly."
Yeah, right ... She could see Andy taking his sweet time getting here and grumbling every inch of the way. They'd be lucky if he didn't let them starve to death before he made it out here.
Jess's gaze went past her to see something behind her that made his jaw go slack.
Her stomach shrank with dread. How bad is it this time? More to the point, how many whatevers were about to attack them?
Not quite ready for another round, she turned to find ...
Her own jaw hit the floor.
Was that Choo Co La Tah? Gone was the old man and in his place was the younger version of him that she'd seen in her visions of the past. Strange that she hadn't noticed before how handsome a man he'd been. He wore his long black hair loose around his shoulders and walked with the swagger of a predator.
This was a warrior in the prime of his youth and that fact was evident in every bulging muscle and most of all in a stance that said he could kill you in a heartbeat.
Jess put himself between them as if to protect her.
Choo Co La Tah smiled. "Stand down, Jess. I'm not here to harm either of you." He held his hands out to his sides to prove his intent. "I do have to say 'thank you' to our Butterfly though."
Abigail frowned. "How so?"
"It appears we didn't miss the deadline as we feared. When they attacked us earlier and you protected me, you shed some of your blood on the cavern floor. Because of that the seals are still intact."
She wasn't sure if she should be grateful or ticked off at him. One day, they'd have to do something about Choo Co La Tah's penchant for withholding important details. "That was the offering I had to make?"
He nodded. "It also restored my youth and health. For that, my dear, I offer a resounding debt of gratitude. I haven't felt this strong in centuries."
Jess stepped aside as she moved forward to eye the ancient Guardian with respect.
"I don't understand," Jess drawled. "Why did you and Old Bear age while neither Snake nor Coyote did?"
Choo Co La Tah lowered his arms. "It takes more energy to not give in to the Dark One they chose to serve. Fighting them and staying true to our duties takes its toll. It's another reason why our posts are finite. There's only so long you can hold them back before the body wears out and leaves you defenseless." He swept his gaze to where Snake lay dead on the ground. Pain flickered deep in his dark eyes. "You were ever a fool, my friend. Ever led astray and for that I am truly sorry. May your soul find the peace your body never could." He looked back at Abigail. "You may lay your fear aside, child. I can hear it even from here. The ancients never held you responsible for the death of Old Bear nor will they for Snake."
His words confused her. "I don't understand. You said-"
"I implied and you inferred. You were only a tool Coyote used for his own purposes. The ancients are able to look past the event to see the true causation and who set it in motion. All of which go back to Coyote and his actions and greed. Just as I was trying to use you and Sundown to lure him to the Valley so that we could trap him. I knew he would follow you. But unfortunately, he's escaped again."
"We can follow once the sun sets," Jess offered.