Rapture (28 page)

Ferox
fell forward, landing on his stomach before rolling to his back. He glanced up
at the other three from his new position on the ground. “Jesus.”

“Sorry.”
Draven laughed and held a hand out to help him up.

“I
guess we should have told you about the landing,” Ethan added, a hint of humor
in his voice.

Ferox
turned away from them then, taking in the sight of the tiny room that housed
nothing but what he guessed were three other portals. They were all easily
visible, and the four doors were spaced perfectly as though they were in a
four-way intersection. “Where do we go?”

Ethan
stepped up beside him and pointed to the right. “That one leads to Vampur. The
others lead to other realms.”

Ferox
eyed the portal to the right, more than a little curious what his home realm
looked like. But that wasn’t what was important right now. Raine was what was
important. “Do any go to Valhalla?”

He
shook his head. “I’m not sure of those realms’ names, but I know for certain
that neither of them lead to Valhalla.”

“He
is right,” someone else said. It was a low, almost creaky sound. From the
center of the room, a man appeared, though he hadn’t been there before. His
short, silver hair gleamed, though that was really the only thing striking
about him. Cloaked in maroon robing, the man stood with his arms folded as he
stared at them pleasantly. It was a face Ferox recognized, but only from the
memories he’d relived while he’d read the tome. “How fare thee, King Ferox?”

“I
need your help,” he replied, having no patience for pleasantries. “I must find
my wife.”

“Your
wife?” he asked, confused.

“His
mate, Raine,” Draven added. “She’s been kidnapped, and we think she’s been
taken to Valhalla.”

“Hmm,”
the old man said. “And you need my help in reaching a realm you’ve already been
to?”

“Yes,”
Ferox answered, wasting no time. “I have no memory of how to travel there, or
much else for that matter.”

Intrigued,
the Keymaster stepped toward him, a curious gleam in his eye. He stared
intently into Ferox’s eyes, enough that Ferox flicked his gaze away
uncomfortably before returning his gaze to the quack. “Did you die?” he asked,
almost whispering to himself. “Oh yes, your memories have been tampered with.”

“Were
they removed?” Draven asked.

“Oh
no. Memories cannot be removed; they can only be
locked
away.”

Garrick
stepped around them, peering at Ferox and then the Keymaster. “Can they be
un
locked?”

“Yes,”
the old man answered. “And who better to do it than the master of keys?”

No
fucking way. He could restore his memories, too? Ferox’s heart leapt at the
thought. He’d found someone who could not only put every piece of his life back
into place, but could also lead him to his wife?

“Of
course,” the Keymaster added, “you’ll remember that nothing comes free. I will
need your blood again.”

Draven’s,
Ethan’s, and Garrick’s faces all screwed up, which was probably what Ferox’s
own face appeared like at the moment.

Draven
shook his head. “What is it about you all wanting our blood? First the Angelos,
now you?”

“Healing
properties,” he replied, drawing two vials from out of thin air before pegging
Draven with a glare. “And you shouldn’t deal with Angelos, they’re … finicky.”

Draven
blinked. “Can you open portals to temples and—”

“I
can open portals to
anywhere
. For a nominal fee.”

“Of
course.”

“Now.”
The Keymaster turned toward Ferox. “Open up a vein. Two vials ought to do it.”

Ferox
did so without any hesitation and held the bleeding pinpricks over the vials.
The others watched silently as the vials filled, even while the Keymaster kept
his eye on Draven.

“I
maybe should have asked for yours,” he said thoughtfully. “Ah well, maybe next
time.”

“What
do you do with it?” Garrick asked, still watching the blood flow into the
vials. Ferox had to reopen the wounds since the flow had all but stopped
already.

“Trade.”
The old man grinned. “You’ve no idea how much something with healing properties
will go for.” When the vials were filled to his liking, he capped them and slid
them into a pocket Ferox hadn’t noticed before. “Now, the three of you might as
well go back to where you came from. Where the good king is going, none of you
can follow.”

Draven
stepped in front of the man, putting his face mere inches from his own. “We’re
all going to get her back.”

“If
you do, you’ll set yourselves up for failure. It is easier to sneak one in than
four, is it not? Especially if that one doesn’t set off Odin’s alarms?”

That
statement stopped his oldest son, and he backed off. “What do you mean?” he
asked, at the same time as Ethan.

“Odin
knows whenever a god or someone he holds dominion over enters his realm. You
two,” he said to Draven and Ethan, “are part Valkyrie, so he would know at once
if you take a step into Valhalla. And you,” he turned to Garrick, “
may
be under his ruling. You’re Fae, and Odin has created many of your kind. The
only one here that could make it in undetected is Ferox.”

“And
how would you know who can and can’t go somewhere?” Ethan asked, peering at the
silver-haired man dubiously.

“I
make it my business to know. Now, are the three of you going to leave, or are
we going to stand about all night and talk about what I do and don’t know?”

****

Ferox
breathed a sigh of relief as the pressure he hadn’t even known was in his mind
had lifted. “I’ll never be able to repay you.”

The
Keymaster waved a hand in dismissal. “Oh, you’ve paid me enough already. Your
blood will fetch a pretty penny, or maybe something better.”

The
old man had restored his memory, in full as far as he could tell. Once Garrick,
Draven, and Ethan had grudgingly been sent packing, the guy had led him to
another room that Ferox hadn’t even known existed, and had spent gods knew how
long with him, as he combed over every inch of his brain, unlocking the
memories that had been hidden from him.

And
now that his past had been restored, he remembered all the times he’d made love
to the woman, could remember when he had taken her for the first time in a bed;
it had been lined with blood red silken sheets that had smoothed over and under
her tight body. Every taste of her blood and every lick of her sex, drinking
her down and taking her within him any way he possibly could. He remembered
their mating, and the sharing of each other’s blood that had solidified their
eternal bond. Remembered how devastating she was as her belly swelled with
life, and the births of his sons. He could now see Draven and Ethan grow into
adulthood, every stage of their growth committed to memory, every bump of the
knee and the way their skin had tanned when they’d run in the sun before their
Instincts had awoken. He’d stood outside during their first tastes of blood
that aided them through their transitions, and then afterward, he’d been by
their sides with every accidental scorch mark whenever they forgot to stay out
of the light. He even remembered his own turning. His Instinct had kicked in
years after Damion’s. He’d had to adjust to drinking blood and hiding from the
sunlight long after Damion had been accustomed to it. He’d been so jealous when
Damion had turned, had felt as though he’d somehow been lacking. And yet now,
he was glad he’d been given extra time to bask in the sunlight.

Everything
had been returned to his memory—the good times and the bad—and he knew exactly
how to reach Raine. His Instinct roared into a fury he hadn’t felt in a long
time. He would reach her. And he would take her from that cocksucker she called
father, god or no.

Ferox
inclined his head to the old man before stalking away. “I thank you again.
Until next time.”

“Uh,
Ferox.” His voice echoed off the empty walls. Ferox turned, looking at the man
as he said, “I have a much faster way. You did already pay for it, after all.”

With
a wave of the Keymaster’s hand, the room transformed before his eyes, morphing
from the dark, empty one to a stark white circular room with portal after
portal.

The
old man walked toward one of the portals and turned, smiling. “Good luck. Oh,
and you will not end up in the same place as before, but feel free to use it as
you need.”

Ferox
eyed the portal and nodded to the Keymaster in thanks before stepping through.

Valhalla
was exactly as his newly reformed memories had recalled. It was night, the
realm’s moons and stars creating a beautiful contrast to the darkened
landscape. The lake just off from the portal glittered from the night sky, and
just on the other side of it, he saw the place where he and Raine had made love
more times than he could count. It was their spot, hidden away from the busy
life of the Valkyries, and easily accessed from the doorway he used to reach
her. He realized he wasn’t far away from the portal he used to travel through.
He passed the lake and snuck through the trees, knowing exactly where her tiny
house had been. He could only hope she lived in the same place, otherwise
combing every hut on Valhalla would take a great deal of time.

But
even as he snuck through the quiet forest, he wondered if and where he would
find her. What if Odin kept her in his hall? That would be of no matter to him.
He’d break down every godsdamned door he had to in order to find his female.

He
reached her hut, and peered in through the window. Valhalla was certainly
behind the times in reference to the comfort they’d been accustomed to over the
last century or so, thus the window was simply a hole in the wall. Raine wasn’t
inside, though two Valkyries were. He ducked low at hearing their conversation,
remaining hidden in the dark.

“Are
you certain she remembers nothing?”

“She
doesn’t. At least none of her real past. She even thinks the leech betrayed her
at the tournament.” The Valkyrie paused and sighed. “The spark Raine used to
have has returned. She really wants nothing more than to train for battle. It
is good to see her back again.”

Ferox
sat on his ass, careful to remain silent as he listened on.

“So
it worked then,” the first one said.

“I
imagine so. Have you ever known Darla to fail?”

“No.
Father will be pleased that she was able to erase so much from her memory. Her
gift continues to grow.”

Gods,
what had they done to her? His fists clenched as he strained to remain under
control. If he gave in, the hut would no longer stand and either the Valkyries
would be dead, or he would be.

“Have
you heard how much longer she will be in the dungeon?”

Ferox’s
fists and jaw clenched. She was in the fucking dungeon? He shook his head,
trying to clear the thoughts of how badly she fared. Was she bound and
shackled? Surely her own father wouldn’t torture her….

“Father
has asked me to take her for a walk tomorrow.”

“Is
that wise?”

“I
don’t see what it would hurt. Our sisters know they are to treat Raine as if
she’d never left. As if none of it had ever happened.”

“What
about the reprogram?”

“It
worked, so far as I can tell. Whenever I say his name, she grows very angry. If
she ever sees the leech again, she’ll slay him on the spot.”

His
jaw dropped, and he’d barely refrained from barging in and slaying the two of
them.

“So,
what happens if she behaves normally tomorrow?”

“I
imagine she’ll be free to leave the dungeon. Father doesn’t want her with the
others.”

“I
really do not know why Father hasn’t asked Darla to work on them as well.”

“He
hasn’t said anything, but I get the sense he wishes to use them as an example.”

Ferox
stayed outside the window long after their candle had been snuffed for the
night. He doubted he could find shelter from tomorrow’s sun, and Raine could be
taken to walk anywhere in this godsforsaken realm. He would return tomorrow
night, and hopefully Raine would be free and clear of the dungeon.

****

“I’m
sure they’re
fine
.” Ally gave Draven a meaningful look before cuddling
into his side. The covers were already warm; she’d been in bed a half-hour
already just waiting for her vampire to join her. “Don’t you think that if your
father had any problems that he’d ask for help?”

“I’m
not so sure. He doesn’t even remember us. If I were in his shoes I wouldn’t
trust any of us.”

“But
didn’t you say that the Keymaster was going restore his memory?”

He
nodded, an action that she felt since she was lying against him. “He
said
so, but who knows?”

Ally
felt for Draven. Riley’s disappearance and the loss of Gregory weighed heavily
on him. And Raine’s kidnapping was doing a lot more damage than he’d let on. He
had even gone back to the Statue of Liberty in hopes of using the Keymaster to
reach Valhalla, but the man didn’t appear despite his insistent summoning. She
honestly didn’t know how the being refused him. She knew Draven’s brand of
insistence, and she’d never been able to ignore it.