Serpent Moon Read online

  “Hardly.” His voice sounded dry and imperious even to his own ears. He grabbed the chain with his good hand and pulled sharply with every ounce of his weight. Thankfully, because the chain was high in silver content, the links weren’t terribly strong. He bore the pain as the silver bubbled his skin. Fortunately, he’d endured far worse at his master’s hands, so he could set aside the pain into a small box that didn’t affect his thoughts. The first chain parted from the ring set in the wall like a hot knife through butter. The other three soon followed. He kept his voice cold and sure. “It was entertaining, to be sure. But I’m here for far more than pleasure, Marduc. You said I would rule by your side. That’s what I intend to do.”

  He snapped both arms forward simultaneously. The chains whipped in the air and connected around a blurry object. She screamed and tried to back away. That was it! It wasn’t that she was completely invisible. She was more like the ghost cats. If he looked closely, he could see a shimmering area where her body blended with objects beyond. He yanked the chains and caught her weight when she fell on top of him. He’d expected it, so he rolled, and she was suddenly under him. He smiled coldly and rejoiced in the scent of her confusion. “Don’t underestimate me, my Goddess,” he hissed and then chuckled. “I think we can teach each other much as we conquer the world.” He shifted forms on top of her and wrapped himself around her with blinding speed, until he could feel the heat of her warming his skin. The chains dropped away when the limbs they controlled dissolved into his slender form. “Now,” he said quietly, flicking his tongue to find her lips. He felt his arousal grow, and this time it was his doing. “Let us do as you promised. We shall have each other as only snakes can. And then,” he whispered, so the others couldn’t hear, “you’ll tell me what plans you’ve made to destroy the Sazi in the valley below.”

  “You surprise me, Ea-Nasil,” Marduc said. He felt her fangs break the skin of his neck and her sweet venom made his heart beat faster. “I’d thought you like the others. But you show promise. Yessss . . . let us see if you’re snake enough to bed a Goddessss.” She shifted forms and Nasil felt his coils unwind because of the sheer size of her. Feathers tickled and cut his skin as she grew and lengthened. She was easily twenty feet long and he felt the brush of wings move on her back. “If you can hold on and mate me as my kind must, we will plan together.”

  He was abruptly airborne, held aloft by a creature he could barely see. He tightened his grip as she flapped skyward, until the rising sun made the shimmering energy of her sparkle and gleam. Below them, at least fifty stories down, was the unforgiving earth, strewn with boulders and cactus. It would be better not to look down. “You want to be taken here?”

  “As I must be. I’d thought it would be one of the birds to manage it, but I’m willing to give you a chance.” She flapped once, making them rise on the warming air currents and then drop again a dozen feet. She barrel-rolled while Nasil tightened his grip. “And look down below. There’s a powerful wolf running across the ground. He’ll be a perfect after-sex snack.”

  Nasil didn’t recognize the wolf, but she was right that he was powerful. He could taste the magic on the wind, and while he wasn’t interested in eating the wolf, it would be useful to question him before Marduc finished him off.

  “And if you can’t hang on to mate, there will be two meals for me.” She laughed, a dark rich sound that made Nasil shudder. Yet, there was something highly erotic at the thought of making love like this—with impending doom hanging over his every move. He felt around with his tail until he found her warm, soft opening. Yes, it could be done with some skillful maneuvering. Holding on with one coil, he drove his fangs into her soft underbelly. She screamed, the sharp sound of metal scraping against concrete. But her scent wasn’t angry, it was aroused. He was bleeding from a thousand tiny cuts from her feathers, but the energy from her so bewitched him that he hardly noticed the pain. He managed to lock inside her, his erection swelling until there was no hope of separation until he completed. He moved with her as she floated, dipping and rolling in the sky. He finally got the rhythm of her motions so that he could thrust when she coiled. With each spin, he found another tooth-hold as one ripped away.

  “Nobody hasss made my body react this way in a very long time, Nasssil,” she gasped. Her body began to tremble and squirm under him. He drove his fangs in deeper, knowing the venom would only heighten her pleasure. He hadn’t even hoped to bring her to orgasm, but it certainly didn’t hurt. “Yessss . . . you. You will be the one to share in my plansss. You have courage and power. So much . . . delicious . . . power. I sense intelligence, as well—the weight of your experience presses on my mind. And you are capable of a viciousness that rivals my own. Already I can feel your seed from our earlier mating killing the challengers, forcing their way to my eggs. It burns inside me with power. So near, so close to my eggs now. You will father my army of winged serpents, Nasil. I can sense it. And you will lead them into battle against the mammals. We will be a nesting pair the world has never seen.”

  She flexed around him, pulling his thrusting member in deeper and it made him groan. His own nest of snakes, strong enough to make the world bow at his feet? While he knew it was wrong to even consider fertilizing the eggs of a monster, the sensations were delicious. He was so very close to climax.

  His heart was pounding so fast it was making him dizzy. So very . . . close. Want . . . need . . . this.

  There was no focusing past the hunger of his body for this snake . . . this woman, who he couldn’t even see. And what was there to go back to? Bruce was dead, by his own hand—the only male he’d ever been interested in. Why not rule the world as a god with a goddess at his side?

  He thrust one last time and couldn’t breathe as the climax took him. He nearly lost his grip from the sheer force of it. She moaned and tumbled as an orgasm claimed her. A series of wing flaps righted them and then she spun toward the ground, and he knew it was so his fluid would travel deep enough to reach her eggs. The complete abandon and exhilaration of watching the ground race toward him while his body shook and tingled in climax made him forget nearly everything he was and everyone he’d ever known. No union would ever be as good, no feeling so right.

  She squirmed in the air for long moments, up and down in the sky while he hung on with every ounce of his strength. Finally, she laughed harshly. “Yes! You have done what nobody else has ever managed! You have fertilized one of my eggs, Nasil. I am finally with child after four lifetimes of failure. With more matings, I know you can fertilize the rest. Then the world will know our wrath!” Her triumphant voice dripped with evil intent.

  A part of Nasil knew he should shudder to realize what he’d just done. But he didn’t. Instead, he felt a smile come to his mouth, buried deep in her sharp feathers.. He would do it again willingly. He wanted this, and though he was surprised at the speed of it, he could feel another erection forming, pressing against her belly, even as she laughed and teased him to greater stiffness. He released his fangs and they hissed as one before he took another bite and entered her again. This time his thrusts were hungry, desperate, and she responded in kind.

  We’ll mate again and again in the skies until you’re spent, my lover—until every one of my eggs is a living snake.

  He demanded no less. With those children to follow him, the world would finally be his. All would tremble . . . or die. At last.

  Finally I will step out of that idiot Sargon’s shadow to become the ruler I was always meant to be! All I have to do is continue to seduce Marduc, and then Ea-Nasil will no longer be just the tormentor of Akede, but of all the Earth!

  But he couldn’t seem to shake that tiny voice in the back of his mind. When did you start to want this, Nasil? Just who is seducing whom?

  Chapter Eighteen

  “SO,” ANTOINE GLARED at Bruce from across the table. The great cat’s arm was still in a sling from the wounds inflicted by Marduc. Holly had healed him as best she could, but he’d been very damaged from
the talons and the fall. She was pretty proud of herself that he wound up with only a single sling. “I’d thought you a captive and worried myself sick over your fate. But instead, you were helping Larry plan the attack that killed other Sazi. I should strike you down where you sit!” He growled, showing sharp white teeth, and Bruce backed his chair away so quickly it nearly fell over. The scent of fear was too strong this close to the moon. Holly had to shake her head to come to her senses.

  She wasn’t sure why she and Eric were even in the room, except to verify what Bruce had just told the council members and seers.

  “Antoine, put away your claws. We have more important things to do.” Lucas might not have power to back it up anymore, but his tone brooked no argument. Josette spoke over the speaker. “Lucas is right, little brother. Love makes us all do foolish, dangerous things. Save your energy for the battle ahead. We’re fortunate Bruce was with Holly and Eric. The spiders could easily have eaten them both.”

  “And what exactly are we to do about these spiders, who are likely on their way as we waste time talking?”

  Antoine apparently hadn’t been listening when Lucas was barking orders earlier. That surprised her. Lucas might not be a council member anymore, but people should still listen to him. Holly decided to update them on what had been happening, before she was asked to come in to the meeting. “Everybody’s getting ready to head to Texas. Adam and Cara Mueller said there are some caves near their pack headquarters where people can set up house for as long as need be. There’s running water and electricity already strung to the site, and it’s not uncommon for families to have reunions there.”

  “And I’ll be leading them,” Lucas added. “I might not be a shifter anymore, but I haven’t lost my memories and I can still plan defense with the best of them. Tony will be with me, and Adam said he’s got a good armory down there. They’ve been planning all along to be Marduc’s primary attack point. How that changed, we’ll probably never know.”

  “Likely it was someone Charles saved.” Josette’s voice was dry. Nobody commented, since most everyone in the room had been saved by Charles at one point. “Has Raphael arrived? Are Ahmad and Bobby secured?”

  Antoine nodded. “They weren’t happy about it, but yes. Tuli’s still wondering why the order included Ahmad, but not her, and Asri is livid. She’s nearly ready to give birth, and she’s waiting for Bobby. Apparently, he’s her coach. I hope there’s a very good reason to lock them in an underground kiva for a week with Raphael draining their power down to nearly nothing.”

  Holly’s mouth dropped open. She knew one of Raphael’s gifts was the death touch, but she’d never heard he could remove just part of someone’s power. And to do that to a councilman? Could they get their powers back later if they were drained like that?

  Lucas answered. “There’s a very good reason. Marduc generally only has control over male snakes, but her control is strong. She likely was able to reach Charles’s mind because she’d bitten him before, in our last encounter. She’ll be seeking out alpha snakes to try to find a mate. She’s born pregnant, but must have the eggs fertilized. Sex and food are her primary motivations at this stage. If she sent the snakes to attack, it was either because she was trying to remove a potential threat to her young, or she was just getting the hang of controlling the lesser shifters. Once she masters the three-days and regular snakes, she’ll go after the alphas. We don’t want Ahmad and Bobby controlled by her . . . or worse—called to her bed. Letting her find an alpha powerful enough to fertilize those eggs would be a disaster. The children would destroy us all. Dampening their power will hopefully let them go unnoticed until we’re ready to attack.”

  “I don’t mean to interrupt,” Holly finally said, “but what about Nasil? Isn’t he powerful enough? He sure held me without any trouble. Couldn’t he already be on her side?”

  Once more Lucas picked up the knife and examined it. It had been passed around the room several times, only to be dropped by each person with a hiss of pain. She’d done it too, because how can you know the sensation unless you experienced it?

  Gawd. Men and dangerous toys. They just can’t stand not toughing it out in front of the others.

  Only Lucas seemed to be able to handle it easily, which confirmed that he had no magical power left to slice away. The others watched him spin it on the table. The scent of envy floated to her nose. She shook her head at the same time as Lucas, but for entirely different reasons. “The way Bruce described the effects of the knife, I doubt he’s got enough power to interest her. That knife has been chewing at him for some time, poisoning his system. She’d probably consider him damaged goods.”

  Holly opened her mouth, but then closed it again. Surely she hadn’t healed him that much. Probably not enough to matter. She noticed Eric didn’t bring it up either.

  “He wouldn’t be interested anyway,” Bruce said quietly. “Larry obeyed Sargon because he had no choice, but he didn’t really want the world to fall. It’s why he keeps helping you guys. He’s been searching for Marduc ever since Sargon died. But not to join her cause. He wanted to kill her before she hatched, so everybody would stay safe. Larry’s not evil. I’d know if he was, and I’d never have stayed with him.”

  Antoine growled, but didn’t move. Still, Holly agreed. Bruce probably would know better than anyone. But that still didn’t explain why she was here. “Then is there a reason you called us in, Nana? Do Eric and I really need to be hearing all this?”

  Lucas turned to her and looked suddenly . . . sad. Nana spoke over the line. “Yes, you do. I dreamed of you last night, Holly. The image I saw was of the black-bladed knife flying to your hand in a battle with Marduc. As Bruce explained it to us, that might happen if it was bonded to you. The magic that created the knife intended to make it a substitute power well. It gathers magical energy and then distributes it at the will of the wielder, one whose magic it has tasted and favors enough to seek out. I believe that wielder is you, Holly.” Nana paused and took a deep breath. “I believe you are destined to slay Marduc.”

  As Holly sat there blinking, trying to decide what to say, she realized the implications were too enormous to even wrap her mind around. Eric let out a low growl. “No. Just no. There’s got to be someone else. Someone who’s not—” He clamped his jaw shut abruptly and the dry, dusty scent of embarrassment rose before he could speak the last word. He wouldn’t meet her eyes.

  Holly felt a flash of anger prickle the hairs on her neck. He damned well better not be saying she wasn’t capable. “I hope you aren’t about to say someone who’s not . . . female, Eric.”

  Lucas smiled sadly and shook his head. “No, I think he’s about to say someone who’s not mine. He can’t help it, Holly. You’re his mate. He has to protect you. It’s in his blood now and there’s no changing it.”

  Eric didn’t say anything, but she could feel Lucas’s words resonate in his head. There weren’t clear thoughts, as such, that she could hear. There was just muddled confusion along with the word No.

  “It’ll take time for him to get over it,” Lucas added. “Months, or even years before he doesn’t leap in front of every speeding bullet for you.” He raised his brows and shook his head. “Ladies, I don’t know if it’s such a good idea for Eric to be here. The stronger Marduc gets, the more males she’ll be able to gather. Not just snakes and birds, but cats and wolves too. I’m thinking maybe he needs to go with us to Texas.”

  “I agree. He’ll have to go,” Josette said firmly. “Holly can’t be distracted in this, and the future’s unclear on his role. It might be the only way Marduc dies is if she’s alone.”

  The future’s unclear? What the hell? Were the seers just guessing? “Excuse me? No way. Did you ever think that the only way I survive to kill Marduc might be if he stays?” Now that she knew he hadn’t deserted her, and couldn’t desert her, she didn’t want him to leave. She didn’t want to be the dragon slayer. But if she had to . . . if she was the only one who could do this, she wanted Er
ic nearby. She intertwined her fingers with his and took a deep breath. “If I stay, he stays. It’s not just a single-sided mating anymore. Not since . . . well, since last night.” Nana started to swear. Holly shrugged. “Hey, you’re the ones who insisted that we had to go last night to find the knife. Well, we did and this is the result. Live with it.”

  Lucas dropped his head until his lower face was hidden by a hand. Was he snickering? That’s sure what it smelled like.

  “We’ll have to confer,” Nana said after a long pause. “You should both get some sleep. Tomorrow will be a long day, regardless of what we decide for you.”

  They hung up the phone without another word. Holly looked around the room. Ivan let out a sigh and rolled his eyes. “Seers. With seers it is always something.”

  Antoine pushed back his chair and hissed when his splinted arm cracked against the tabletop. “Ivan, I think we should meet to discuss things. Lucas,” he said, his voice cooling to near disdain, “I presume you believe you should attend as well.”

  Lucas bared teeth in something that bore no semblance of a smile. Yet his scent had no particular emotion, unless tired counted. “You’d presume correctly. But start without me. I need to have a few words with Holly.” He met Eric’s eyes and there was command in them. “Eric, please escort Bruce to the holding cell on the main floor and guard him until his trial.” When Bruce gasped, Lucas turned to the man and continued without any sympathy in his scent or voice. “No matter what the crisis, Bruce, we can’t simply ignore the fact that you did help Nasil with his plans. You could have gotten to a phone, or found a way to get a message to us months ago. But you didn’t, even knowing full well that people were going to die if the plan went forward. Surely you must know the penalty for that.”

  Bruce looked around the room, panic etching lines in his face. Ivan and Antoine met his gaze. “Surely you don’t expect my help,” Antoine said with disbelief. “You betrayed me. Betrayed us all.”