Reapers of the Dark (Cora Roberts #4)

Chapter 20

CHAPTER TWENTY

If I show you what’s in my heart, will you crush my dreams or nurture them?

W orried shifters eyed me with distrust as I entered the pack house. My intervention in their children’s fate had run out of currency quickly. You could spend your life doing good deeds, and all anyone would remember was the one bad thing.

It was part of how we were wired; the negative feelings infiltrated our core memories so much easier than joy and happiness. But that knowledge didn’t mean I wasn’t feeling hurt and annoyed at Hudson’s people. I wasn’t responsible for this. If I was, I would hold up my hands and admit it, but they couldn’t lay this travesty at my feet.

“That was no animal attack,” Gordon snarled. “I couldn’t smell anything but death.”

There was no fooling a shifter’s nose.

Hudson folded his arms and leaned against the side of the sofa I sat on. “You’re right. But you need to stop looking at my mate like she is responsible.”

Gordon pointed at me, and Indigo perked up. Great. My soul-sucking alter ego was eyeballing an alpha as a snack. That was all we needed. “Wherever she goes, death follows. First the spiritual influx in town, and now this? You can’t tell me it’s a coincidence.”

Benedict leaned forward. “What is your explanation, Cora?”

Norbert shook his head. “She doesn’t need to explain anything. She wasn’t here and isn’t responsible. So use your anger and fear to fuel the hunt. Something has come on our lands and slaughtered our cattle. That is the ‘something’ that needs your focus, not the woman our leader has chosen to love and rule with.”

I didn’t want to rule anyone. I was happy in my small world of guest house tasks and small-town medical issues. The fact I’d fallen for one of the faction leaders meant I was dragged into the forefront of the political landscape. I knew it and accepted it, but it didn’t make me hate it any less. I couldn’t keep hiding behind Hudson, though. For this to work, I had to step up to the role I never wanted.

“There are forces at work beyond anything we have seen or faced before,” I started. Hudson’s hand squeezed my shoulder in silent strength. I met each of the alpha’s eyes before continuing. “My grandmother wants to out our existence to the humans and position herself as our de facto ruler.”

There was a round of curses and grumblings. I waited for them to quiet down, twisting my fingers in my lap. Here goes. “She tried to command the factions with a spelled pact, which failed because no one signed it. She also tried to siphon power from demons, which also backfired on her.”

“And now?” Keira asked.

I met her gaze. “Now she is in cahoots with a god.”

Silence blanketed the room.

“God? Like the God?” Benedict said with a laugh.

“No, not the god we pray to. A god of old. Donn.”

Norbert swore. Well, that was new. The doc was unflappable. But he clearly had knowledge.

“Who is Donn?” Gordon asked.

“The Celtic god of death.”

Nobody moved, and they collectively held their breath while it penetrated that we were dealing with a deity. We couldn’t ignore the enormity of it. Whatever was coming, we were severely unprepared.

“So what do we do?” Jessy asked, breaking the shock.

My eyes closed for a second. They weren’t attacking me for being the granddaughter of our greatest enemy. They didn’t go for my throat because my blood relation caused the chaos threatening their way of life. No. Instead, they asked what we could do.

My throat felt tight, but I swallowed the knot back down and released a breath. “I’m going to try to get her to see reason, to stop this before any more lives are lost,” I told them.

“Eloise isn’t known for her diplomacy—or backing down,” Jessy responded.

“No, she’s not.”

“So what makes you think you have a chance of stopping her?”

“I’m blood,” I whispered. My skin burned at the remembrance of what that had meant. She lost any commitment from me on the floor of that torture room.

“So, what? You beg your grandma to stop this nonsense, and if she refuses to back down, then what?” Gordon asked.

A sad smile tilted up my lips. “Then I kill her.”

I jogged down the stairs, my red tea dress swishing against my calves. I’d gathered my hair into a loose knot at my nape and chose some family jewelry to mark the occasion. The house smelled of roast turkey and all the trimmings, making my stomach rumble.

The shifters had required a little more explanation around the animal slaughter. Dave advised me to avoid using the word zombie, which I complied with, as they were already freaked out enough. But I was at a loss as to why those killings had happened. What was the purpose? Was there even one? A reenactment of The Walking Dead didn’t happen every day, so maybe it was a test? Perhaps Sera was my grandmother dipping her toe in the zombie water.

I stuttered to a stop outside the parlor door and scowled. “Hey, no TV. It’s family time,” I snapped as I strode between Dave and Hudson to grab the remote.

Hudson snatched it and moved it out of my way. “Watch,” he quietly demanded.

“There is nothing on that TV that means more to me than spending the evening with the people I love, eating too much turkey, and entering a carb coma.”

A familiar female voice, firm but alluring, filled the room. I froze and stared in horror as my grandmother stood on a podium alongside the presidential candidate, who was a popular favorite to rule our country. “I can’t thank you enough for coming out today. I am delighted to announce that Eloise Roberts will be joining me on the trail as my VP.”

The news headlines swept across the bottom of the screen, reinforcing the fact my grandmother was set to become the next Vice President of the United States. How had she managed that? Weren’t there rules? Votes? Things… I shook my head. She had a god in her pocket, so the rules didn’t apply. He wasn’t bound by the same constraints as the rest of us.

“That’s concerning,” Dave muttered. Concerning? Concerning?

“No, this is my grandmother moving her final pieces onto the board. She’s now in the position to usher the world into a new era, one where she styles herself as the savior of humanity and the ruler of the factions. This is not concerning, Dave, this is a fucking disaster.”

Aunt Liz and Aunt Sophia ambled into the room, glanced at the TV, and continued on their journey to the dining room. “No TV on family dinner nights. You know the rules,” Liz said.

Wait for it. Wait…

She froze, the bowl of veggies in her hands trembling as she took two steps backward and absorbed the headline. “Fuck,” she muttered. “What are you doing, mother?”

Hudson turned off the TV and spun to face me. “This can wait for one night. We can eat and drink like a normal family who isn’t balancing the fate of the world. For one night, we can eat apple pie and joke about ordinary things like the fact Maggie washed the sheets with a red sock.”

She did? I had pink sheets? My lips twitched.

Hudson grabbed my hand and led me into the dining room. My aunts were all here—Liz, Dayna, Stella, Anita, and Sophia. My chosen family also surrounded the table—Maggie, Rebecca, Sebastian, and Aira, who was a last-minute addition. Harry floated next to Rebecca, seemingly taken with the vampire princess, compounded by the fact she could see and communicate with him. Even my damn cat had taken a perch in the window and was eyeballing the partially carved turkey.

“Should we say grace?” Aira asked.

I snorted, and Aunt Liz’s lips twitched. But you know what? Grace wasn’t about calling down the one God, it was about vocalizing things we were thankful for, and in this climate, we needed to hold tight to those.

“Why don’t we say one thing we are grateful for? I’ll go first,” I declared.

Hudson raised a brow at me. “Okay.”

“Thank you, universe,” I started, because that seemed like a catch-all that avoided pissing off any one deity in particular. “For the strength I have found in opening up to those I trust. Thank you for grounding me in their love and acceptance.”

Sophia sniffed. Don’t cry. That would start a cascade, and I’m too hungry for that.

Dave leaned forward and stabbed a slice of meat. “I am thankful for juicy meat.”

Umm, okay. Liz snorted. “And I am grateful that you took a vow to protect my niece.”

He did what now? My head jerked to Dave. He popped the turkey in his mouth and groaned.

“I am grateful for the yarn sale,” Sophia said. This was giving me whiplash. Maybe we could set up a “grateful meter.” Silly or serious—pick a lane.

Maggie tucked her hair behind her ears. “I am grateful to Cora for taking a chance on a scared teenager.”

My heart swelled.

Sebastian smirked. “I’m grateful for my father being an unaccepting bitch, which finally gave me the excuse I needed to leave that house and live my life how I want, without judgment.”

The wards in my head clanged, and the doorbell rang ten seconds later. That was quick, which meant it was my father or uncle, and they had decided to be polite rather than just invade my house, as they had both proven the wards were no obstacle. Unless it was… Nope. I refused to think about that right now.

I shoved my chair out and hurried to the door. I swung it open, and my father grinned at me, thrusting a golden wrapped box into my hands. “For my daughter.”

“Oh. We said no gifts, so no stress.”

He strode inside, and Lucifer appeared behind him. “I want nothing in return, Cora. A father should be able to give a gift to his daughter without receiving that look of suspicion.”

I shook the box gently. Something rattled inside.

“I wouldn’t do that too hard,” Lucifer advised with a quirk of his brow.

I frowned. “Do you know what it is?”

He nodded with a smirk before joining my father at the table.

I placed the box down on the front desk and escaped back to the dining room. Someone had pulled two chairs up, making room for the archangels, who were filling their plates with the feast set before them.

Hudson’s hand squeezed mine. “You invited them?” he asked.

I nodded. “I did.”

“That was awfully kind of you.”

Kind? No. But prudent? Yes. We had a god problem, and no one could convince me that gaining two archangel allies was a bad thing.

I smiled softly and noted he placed a little of everything on my plate, heavy on the stuffing and parsnips. Something settled in my heart that he knew what I would enjoy the most. My gaze fell to his plate. Did I know the same about him? I think so. Meat, roast potatoes, and honey glazed carrots were his favorites.

We fell into relaxed conversation and enjoyable food. I shouldn’t be waiting for the other shoe to drop, but I couldn’t help it. I glanced at the clock as my family and friends joked and smiled. This was everything I needed.

I glanced at Hudson. Love.

Then Rebecca and Sebastian. Friendship.

Maggie. Protection.

My father. Strength.

My aunts. Support.

My ghost. Adoration.

My uncle. Wit and humor.

My damn cat. Snooty indifference.

The wards rang inside my mind and through my chest.

Hudson frowned. “Someone is here.”

Dave jerked to his feet, and Aunt Liz tugged his arm, shaking her head. “Sit down.”

Here goes nothing. I rose from my chair, swallowing thickly. Hudson was a step behind me, a silent protective presence at my back. After wiping my palms on my dress, I swung open the door, just as a man in an impeccable suit opened the rear door of the idling car in the driveway.

Elegant legs appeared first, followed by her familiar form. Her lips curled into a smile, one that didn’t reach her eyes, and my heart beat with an erratic rhythm. They said if you stared your fear in the eyes, you could overcome it. I wasn’t just testing that theory—I was banking my life on it.

She traipsed up the stairs and smiled at me.

I returned the smile on reflex. “Good evening, Grandmother.”