Dark Fates (A Paranormal Anthology)(39)

“What?” After all she’d been through in the last two days, now she wasn’t human? She turned to Tariq. “Is this because we mated?”

He slapped his hand over his eyes and looked to be in pain.

Chig nodded. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. Congrats, T. Now can we please find a way to tell Anubis Set’s been f*cking with you? You have to protect your mate, especially since she’s—”

“Not now,” Tariq roared, and even Lowe looked taken aback. “Chig, not another word. Mbizi, explain our situation.”

Eden wanted to know what had suddenly put him into a lather, but Mbizi’s explanation distracted her.

“The Elixir of Life really is a cheat. That vial Eden made was only possible because she’s in her forty-first conversion.”

“What?”

“He means your forty-first life. You’re an old lady, aren’t you?” Lowe said with a smirk, still held in place by Chig’s large hand wrapped around her arm.

Mbizi nodded. “Set needed a reincarnate’s blood, his own blood, and a host of other ingredients to create a potion that makes gods of men.” He paused. “A loophole around the games’ rules.”

Tariq frowned. “But Set has never cared for the games.”

“No, but a lot of the other gods do,” Lowe said. “If Set’s smart, he’ll be wheeling and dealing with them for favors while keeping that potion aside for whatever he wants.” Her blue eyes gleamed. “I know if it were me, I’d take out my opponents one by one. A cheater here, a few sure-deaths there. Weaken the enemy. Then load up my key player with some god juice and take over the world. It’s easy if you do it right.”

Eden understood half of that, but Tariq seemed to have no problem making the connection. “By the gods, he’s going to get Anubis kicked out of the game. That means I’ll have to leave. If I can’t find a way around his spell to tell Anubis what’s happened, Eden will be alone here. With the Dogs.”

At Set’s mercy, someone to threaten to get Tariq to do whatever he wanted. Eden understood what Tariq refused to say.

Lowe shrugged. “That’d be my play, especially since it’s obvious she’s yours. And we all know Set has a hard-on for making you his bitch.”

Everyone stared at her.

“What? You think it’s a big secret you’re some kind of Armageddon in a bad-ass body?”

“Actually, yes.” Chig frowned. “How come I didn’t know that?”

“Or me?” Mabu asked.

“I knew.” Hasani shrugged. “But then, I know everything.”

Eden had a hard time wrapping her mind around a few details. “Wait, wait. So the Dogs are…?”

“Set’s loyal guards. We’re jackals, technically, not dogs,” Hasani explained. “But the other pantheons don’t see the difference, and Set’s such an * he has our own guys insulting themselves. Trouble is they’re under his spell, so the Dogs are Egyptian, but not allies.” At her blank look, he said, “Remember our fight with those bikers wearing Greek jackets? The different teams come across as gangs to the mortal public. We’re Jackals, but only douches wear gang jackets.”

“O-kay.” She remembered the Greeks. Apparently there were Dogs too. And Jackals. And valkyries?

Lowe snorted. “Don’t look at me like that. I agree. Leather jackets and bikes are so passé. But really, Set is killing his pantheon. I mean, my god wants to win, and though we’re all on Team Norse, and we’d help each other against any non-Norse team, my guy still wants the trophy.”

Chig watched her. “Interesting. I thought you worked for Freya. So who’s your guy?”

“A figure of speech and not the point.” Lowe flushed. Apparently she’d given away something she shouldn’t have.

Eden’s brain buzzed. “Let me get this straight. Set had to use me to make this Elixir. But it’s not allowed, and now Anubis is going to be blamed for cheating and kicked out of this game, which is a big deal.”

Tariq and the others nodded.

“And we can’t tell Anubis the truth because Set put a spell on Tariq and all of you to keep quiet.”

Hasani nodded

“Well, that sucks,” Lowe said. “Because Eden made the spell, she’s directly responsible. She’s as good as dead unless you dump the Elixir. And by dump, I mean get rid of it entirely.”

“Do you have any idea what that’s worth?” Mbizi asked. “Gods would and have killed for it in the past. The Elixir is nearly impossible to create. With it, gods are born. It’s also now a huge part of the game if you and others know of it.”

Eden sighed. “So if and when I find it, because I have no idea where it is, I can’t just dump it down the sink?”

Mbizi shook his head. “Sorry, no. The Elixir is magical. It can only be consumed, not destroyed.”

“Well, shit.”

Lowe laughed. “You know, I’m beginning to like her. Now that I think about it, you might have a shot at getting out of this mess.”

Tariq crossed his huge arms. “Oh?”

“With my help.”

“And you would help us, why?” Chig asked.

Lowe smiled. “For one, I want that Elixir. Like you said, it’s worth a lot. I’m not afraid of death. I’m a valkyrie, and we live to challenge the reaper.”