The Darkest Lie (Lords of the Underworld #6)(77)
Author: Gena Showalter

“I didn’t burn her,” Cronus snapped. “Your daughter did. But this should be a private conversation. Gideon, I trust you’ll guard Mnemosyne until such time as I can retrieve her. After all,” he added with a pointed glance at Rhea, “I doubt she’s in any condition to follow in her sister’s footsteps and seduce you.”

Rhea screeched an unholy sound, and as Gideon reached up to cover his already hurting ears, he found himself lying on his bed in his bedroom. NeeMah was on his floor, his to do with as he pleased, apparently, since a slave collar now circled her neck.

“Thank you,” he shouted, praying Cronus would hear and that the king would stab his queen through her rotted, black heart.

With this latest truth, his demon roared and his pain tripled, burning through him like fire. Darkness winked over his vision, but he threw himself to the ground and crawled to NeeMah.

She whimpered and tried to scramble away.

“No reason to want to escape, darling. You’re in for a treat.” Maintaining a grip under her arms, he stood to shaky legs and began dragging her to the dungeon.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

THAT BITCH! was the first thought to hit Scarlet as she awoke. Fuming, she bolted upright. Rhea had finally whisked her out of Budapest and into the heavens. Where she’d seen her naked mother straddling her naked boyfriend. Then Rhea had tossed her somewhere sunny. Where, Scarlet didn’t know. All she’d known was that the abrupt switch from dark to light had utterly confused her demon. Unlike the ambrosia field, time did exist between the two locations.

She’d gotten the barest glimpse of speeding cars and towering buildings before her eyes had shut of their own accord and her mind had sunk into a deep, undisturbed sleep.Now she was in a freaking hospital, she realized as her gaze circled her surroundings. She must have passed out on a busy sidewalk, no one had been able to revive her, and so they’d taken her in for medical care. Shit!

A heart monitor beeped beside her. Electrodes were attached to her chest, and an IV protruded from her arm. The medical staff had replaced her clothes with a paper-thin gown and removed her weapons. Local police would most likely come around to talk to her about that, too, and damn it, she didn’t need that right now.

Damn it, she thought again. Motions clipped, she jerked out the needle, blood seeping from inside her elbow, and ripped away the cords. The monitor went crazy, shouting loud and long as she threw her legs over the side of the gurney.

Footsteps pounded, and then a short, plump female was rounding the corner and flying into Scarlet’s room. When she spotted Scarlet sitting up, about to stand, the tension left her features, but she extended her arms to push Scarlet back down.

“Ma’am, ma’am, you need to be careful.” She spoke in English, no hint of an accent. I’m in the States, Scarlet realized. “We don’t yet know what was wrong with you and—”

“I’m fine, and I’m leaving.” Determined, she brushed the woman aside and stood. Her knees were weak and almost buckled, but she pressed her weight into her heels and steadied herself, even as a wave of dizziness hit her.

What the hell had they been pumping into her vein?

Strong hands settled on her shoulders and applied pressure. Having none of that, Scarlet again knocked the woman’s arms aside. “Where are my clothes?” Her butterfly necklace was in the pocket of her pants, and she wanted it back.

The human clearly wasn’t used to being challenged; she paled as she backed away, palms raised and out. “Your clothes are with your arsenal.”

Yep. Those weapons had gotten her into trouble. “And where’s my arsenal?”

Eyes of light brown narrowed. “With the police.” Hard, firm tone. “There’s an officer here who’s been waiting to talk with you, so I suggest you lie back down. You shouldn’t be up and around. We’re still running tests, trying to figure out what’s wrong with you.”

Shit, she thought again. If her clothes were locked away in some police station, getting them back would take a lot of time and effort. Time and effort she didn’t have. “Look, nothing’s wrong with me except my clothes and belongings have been stolen. Now where the hell am I?”

“Northwestern Memorial.”

“No. What city?”

The nurse blinked at her. “Chicago.”

Why the hell had her mother sent her here?

“I’m just going to get your doctor and let her know you’re ready to be discharged,” the nurse said. Of course, Scarlet knew she was lying. Thanks to Gideon, she considered herself a living lie detector now. The nurse was going to summon the officer.

Scarlet allowed the woman to leave the room without protest. The moment she was alone, she kicked the shadows out of her head. They wrapped around her, cuddling her close, enveloping her with impenetrable darkness. Well, impenetrable for everyone else. No one would be able to see her, but she could absolutely see everyone and everything.

Rather than leave, however, she pressed against the wall, right by the doorway. Just in time, too. The officer, who was in his early twenties, physically fit and determined, came barreling down the hall, coffee in hand. He haphazardly slapped that coffee on the counter of the nurses’ station without slowing his step, his other hand remaining on his gun handle.

Scarlet gasped in horrified realization. He was a Hunter. The tattoo on his wrist, a symbol of infinity, wasn’t just for decoration. It was his mark, his vow to kill those who were demon-possessed.

That’s why her mother had flashed her here. There was probably a contingent of Hunters based here.

Her stomach twisted. At least Rhea hadn’t flashed her into the middle of that contingent. Which had to mean, on some level, that Rhea held her in some affection.

Wishful thinking, and you know it. Most likely, Rhea had just misjudged the distance.

When the man reached Scarlet’s room, he flew past the door, just as Nurse Tattletale had, his expression resolved. He stopped and growled when he realized he was alone.

“Where’d she go?” he demanded.

None of the nurses were willing to approach and respond.

Had Rhea had time to tell him who Scarlet was? What Scarlet was? Probably not. Otherwise, there would have been more than one Hunter waiting for her to awaken, and this one wouldn’t have left her. Even for a second. So why was he here?

There had probably been a report about her appearing out of nowhere, she realized, and he probably wanted to know how she’d done it.