Ensnared: An Eternal Guardians Novella Read online

  “I am listening to you. And what I’m hearing is defiance.”

  “I’m not trying to defy you.”

  “Refusing to answer my questions is defiance.” A vein in his temple began to pulse. “No one defies me. No one says no to the king of the gods.” He drew closer, looming over her like a menacing shadow, causing her to ease back on the stone bench. “Do you know what happens to those who defy me? I crush them. And make no mistake, little one. I will crush you if you don’t tell me what I want to know.”

  She stared up at Zeus, knowing she was nothing to him. Nothing but a pawn in whatever game he wanted to play. But she was tired of being nothing. Tired of doing nothing. Out of nowhere, a strength Kara hadn’t known she possessed gathered deep in her core, causing her back to straighten. “Go ahead and crush me then. Throw me back in that pit. Neither will get you the answer you want because I don’t know how I did it. And all your ranting and raving is not going to change that fact now or anytime soon.”

  A low growl echoed from the king of the gods, and then he slapped his hands on the bench on both sides of her, making her gasp and lurch back.

  Eyes like soulless black orbs locked on hers as he stared down at her. “You’re a fool, little mortal. Are you willing to throw your life away for this?”

  Was she? She swallowed hard as she stared at him. She didn’t have any other answer besides, “Yes. Because it’s the truth.”

  “Your friend Morpheus was willing to throw his life away just like this. Did he tell you about that? Did he tell you about the thousand years of misery he spent in my pit because he was unwilling to give me what I want?”

  Kara’s mouth fell open. “A thousand years?” she whispered.

  “A thousand torturous years. Very few can last that long, but he did. I realized then the god of dreams knew how to play hardball. So I devised a way to break him.”

  Kara swallowed hard, almost afraid to hear more.

  “If you don’t care about yourself,” Zeus sneered, “so be it. But you are not as strong as Morpheus, and I can be a patient god. I can wait for your loved ones to cross into the human realm. It will be satisfying torturing them in front of you until you do give in.”

  Kara gasped.

  A victorious smile spread across Zeus’s face as he leaned back. “Now you understand. I lured each and every one of Morpheus’s family members out of their hiding places. I tortured and maimed his father Hypnos. His brothers Phobotor, Phantasus, and Ikelos. His mother Pasithea. I thought for sure he’d break when he heard his mother’s screams, but he didn’t. He is a tough one, our Morpheus. He never gave me what I wanted. And now look at him. He is the last dream weaver in the cosmos. And he works for me.”

  Kara’s chest squeezed so tight, it was hard to get air. “Wh-what did you want from him?”

  “Originally?” Zeus gazed down at his hand. “I ordered him to infiltrate Lachesis’s dreams.”

  “The Fate?”

  “The one and only.”

  Kara could barely believe what she was hearing. The Fates controlled all life in the cosmos. They determined births and deaths and destinies. They were more powerful than Zeus and all the gods combined.

  “Morpheus refused,” Zeus went on. “I’m still bitter about that. But it all worked out in my favor in the end. The dream weaver may refuse to infiltrate the dreams of immortals for me, but he does of any mortal I request. A thousand years of misery and the murder of his whole family taught him not to cross me.” He dropped his hand and pinned Kara with a menacing look. “And you, little one, would be wise not to cross me as well. If you don’t want your family to wind up like Morpheus’s, I suggest you tell me exactly what I want to know right this very minute.”

  Kara’s gaze dropped to the stone floor of the courtyard, but she barely saw it. All she could see was Ryder in that pit of darkness, isolated and alone for a thousand years. Being forced to watch the people he loved tortured and killed, unable to do anything to help them because he knew if he gave in to Zeus, the alternative would be a million times worse. If Zeus could infiltrate the dreams of the Fates, he could see any person’s destiny—mortal or immortal. He could alter those destinies. A power like that...it would destroy the world.

  Her heart felt as if it shattered into a million pieces. He’d sacrificed himself, his family, for the good of mankind. He’d done it even knowing no one would hail him as a hero or thank him down the line. How many others would do that? How many others would put the needs of many before their own wants and desires? Before the people they loved?

  She didn’t know anyone who could survive something like that. Who wouldn’t be hardened and twisted with the need for revenge after an event so horrific. But Ryder wasn’t cold and heartless. He wasn’t the monster he could so easily have turned into after a history like that. He was passionate. He was gentle. When he’d come back after his walk that morning, he’d wanted nothing but to take her somewhere so she could be safe.

  Safe...

  The word circled in her mind. He’d wanted only to get her to safety. He must have known Zeus would come for her. He must have realized she’d been the one to shift the dreamscape into reality. And he hadn’t set her up as she’d assumed. Yes, he’d been working for Zeus, but he’d told her that morning that he needed to run a quick errand before they left that cabin. He must have been talking about coming here and telling Zeus she didn’t have any Horae powers. She’d heard him say that to Zeus when they’d first arrived. She’d heard the panic in his voice when Zeus had announced he didn’t care and that he had other plans for her.

  Warmth filled her chest. Warmth and a need to see him and tell him she knew he wasn’t what Zeus said. Except...she had no idea where Zeus had sent him. And trapped here on Olympus, it was possible she might never see her fantasy again.

  Unless she could fall asleep. Maybe find a way to alter her dream into reality even though she had no freakin’ clue how she’d been able to do that before.

  “What is that?” Zeus shot a look to the right and went still as stone. Seconds later, he growled, reached for Zakara’s arm, and hauled her to her feet. “You’re coming with me.”

  Zakara gasped and struggled against the king of the gods’ hold, but he was too strong. He easily pulled her through the grotto to a different arched doorway. This one opened to the gilded main street of Olympus and the temples of the other gods.

  Darkness surrounded her, illuminated only by twinkling stars and a waning moon above. But it was enough to see the bodies littering the ground. Bodies of gods and mortals completely unmoving.

  She gasped, unsure what was happening. At her side, Zeus growled, “Dream weaver.”

  Kara looked up, and her heart nearly stopped when she spotted Ryder standing only yards away, holding a small vial of powder in his hand.

  “That won’t put me to sleep, you fool.” Zeus shoved Kara aside and stepped down the stone steps, moving into the street across from Ryder. “You were an idiot to come back here.”

  “Possibly. But I’m here to offer you a deal.”

  Kara found her footing against the stone wall, unable to take her eyes off Ryder. He was still wearing the thin linen pants he’d had on last night, was still barefoot, his hair rumpled in the dim light. But instead of the flannel shirt he’d been wearing earlier, he was now bare chested and beautiful, the light glinting off his strong muscles and tan skin. Her perfect fantasy a thousand times over.

  “And what kind of deal could you possibly offer me?” Zeus asked. “I already own you.”

  “You don’t own me. You use me. But I choose when to say yes and when to say no. If you let Zakara return to Argolea, however, I’ll give you my powers. Yours to do with as you wish.”

  Zeus went still. And in the silence, Kara held her breath and glanced from Ryder to Zeus and back again, confused by what this meant.

  “You would give them to me freely?” Zeus asked hesitantly.

  “Yes.”

  “With no limitations on who
I could use them on?”

  Oh shit. Kara’s eyes flew wide. He wasn’t saying—

  “Yes.”

  No. Her chest contracted. She opened her mouth but before she could scream the word, a hand darted out of the shadows and closed over hers, yanking her to the side.

  Kara grunted, but another hand slapped over her mouth, and when she twisted around in the foliage suddenly hitting her in the face, her eyes grew wide to see her cousin Talisa staring down at her.

  “Shh, dammit,” Talisa whispered, releasing Kara’s mouth. “We’re almost out of time. We have to get out of here before Zeus realizes you’re gone.”

  They were working together. Ryder was sacrificing himself for her. He had no intention of giving his powers to Zeus. And he was willing to risk torture and another thousand years in that pit to keep her safe.

  “I can’t.” Her throat swelled closed. “We can’t leave him like this.”

  “It’s our only chance, Kara. He’s doing this for you.”

  She knew that. He was saving her the same way he’d saved mankind.

  Only it wasn’t his turn to do the saving. It was hers.

  Chapter Eight

  “It’s a very tempting offer, dream weaver.” Zeus tipped his head and leveled Ryder with a hard look. “But I think I’ll pass.”

  Shock rippled through Ryder. “You’re passing on my ability to infiltrate anyone’s dreams?” That was not an answer he’d expected. “It’s what you’ve always wanted from me.”

  “It was.” Zeus grinned. “And I’ve no doubt you’ll give them to me at a later date. For now I’ll be content keeping you and the two Horae descendants locked up safe and sound.”

  Shit. He knew Talisa was trying to rescue Kara. He should have known the king of the gods wouldn’t be so easily distracted.

  “So go ahead and try to lock us up,” Zakara said at Zeus’s back, stepping out of the shadows onto the stone steps. Zeus whipped around and stared up at her. “If you can, that is.”

  The air seemed to move. Everything blurred, then cleared. Only when it did, they were no longer on Olympus. They were in a grassy clearing, tall trees edging the field, giant snow-capped mountains in the distance. Above stars glittered, and the sounds of night—of owls and bats, and other creatures found in the human realm—echoed on the wind.

  Zeus turned a slow circle and glanced over the bodies also circling the field. All of the Argonauts, weapons already drawn and ready for a fight. Nick, the Misos leader, who was a god himself and just as powerful as Zeus. Erebus, a minor god who’d sided with the Argonauts. Prometheus, the Titan Zeus had tortured for years before he’d been freed by the Argonauts. Circe, Prometheus’s mate, and the strongest witch in all the realms. And them—Talisa, Zakara, and a dream weaver.

  “What is this?” Zeus growled.

  “The end of you if you don’t leave now,” Zakara answered. “You chose not to take Ryder’s deal. Now you can suffer the consequences.”

  Nick lifted his hands and conjured an energy bolt. Prometheus snapped his fingers and fire encircled the clearing. Circe began muttering the ancient words of a spell as the Argonauts stepped forward and circled in on the king of the gods.

  Zeus’s growl grew louder. His irate gaze jumped from one face to another. And then with a roar he disappeared in a plume of smoke.

  “Holy Hades,” Talisa whispered. “What was that?”

  The Argonauts, Prometheus, Nick, Erebus, and Circe all faded until only the three of them remained.

  “That,” Zakara said with a smile as she turned toward her cousin, “was my gift. Pretty cool, huh?”

  Talisa’s wide eyes darted to her cousin’s face. “You conjured that? None of them were real?”

  “Well, the clearing is real. I was able to morph our reality and bring us to the human realm. But yeah, our dads and Nick and the others weren’t real. I was able to tweak your perceptions and make Zeus think they were real, though.”

  “Holy fuck.” Talisa gasped at her. “How the hell did you do that?”

  “I don’t know. I just focused on an image I had in my head, and it appeared. I guess it’s not all that different from what I did when I was asleep. That was a dream. This was kind of like a daydream.” When Talisa only stared at her, Zakara shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s all pretty new to me.”

  “That’s fucking awesome. I mean...no one can do that. Do you realize how useful that’s going to be?”

  A satisfied smile spread across Zakara’s face, but Ryder was still strung too tight to feel the same kind of elation as the girls. He grasped Zakara by the arm and pulled her into the trees. “We have to get the hell out of here before Zeus figures out what happened and comes back.”

  She didn’t argue with him—which he was thankful for—and as soon as they were a hundred yards into the trees, he looked to Talisa and said, “Take her back to Argolea as fast as you can.”

  “Wait.” Kara turned to face him. “You’re coming with us.”

  “No, I’m not.”

  She grasped his arm when he let go of her and turned him back to face her. “Yes, you are. I didn’t do all this so you could just poof out of my life again.”

  “Zakara...” He sighed, not wanting to argue with her, only wanting her as far from this place as possible. “Zeus will be looking for me after this. He’ll be hellbent on revenge. You’re not safe anywhere near me.”

  “I’m safe in Argolea.”

  “Which is why you need to go there now.”

  “And so are you.”

  “No, I’m not.”

  She gripped his arm tighter. “Yes, you are. Zeus can’t go there.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Her brow lowered. “Aren’t you like thousands of years old? How can you not know about Zeus’s one fatal design flaw?”

  “I’ve spent my life either in the cosmos, the dream world, or in a pitch-black pit on Olympus. I didn’t spend any more time than necessary focused on Zeus.”

  Her expression softened. “He can’t access the realm of Argolea. He originally created it as a safe space for his son Herakles. A realm where his vindictive wife Hera couldn’t hurt him. He banned access to Argolea from the Olympians, and in the process, he banned himself.”

  A place Zeus couldn’t access? He stared down at her, barely believing her words. Zeus could go anywhere, even the cosmos.

  She stepped into him and rested her hands on his chest. “You’ll be safe in Argolea. Safer than you are in the cosmos. Zeus can find you there. He invaded your home once before. He’ll do it again to get back at you.”

  His stomach tightened as he stared down at her in the moonlight. “You know about that?”

  She nodded. “He told me. He thought it would scare me. It didn’t. It just made me fall even harder for you.”

  His heart raced against his ribs, and his hands lifted to her arms. “I didn’t hand you over to him. I wouldn’t do that. I didn’t even know we were in the human realm or that his Sirens could find us.”

  “I know that.”

  “I would never imprison you the way I was imprisoned. I didn’t even know you could do the things you can do.” He glanced past her toward the clearing he could no longer see. “That you could do...that.”

  “I know that too.” She smiled up at him, drawing his gaze back to her beautiful face. “Which is why I want you to come home with me. Where we can both be safe. Where we can pick up where we left off in that mountain cabin.”

  His heart stuttered. He heard what she was saying, but could barely believe she was saying it. “I... You still want me after everything that happened?”

  “Of course I do. Don’t you want me?”

  “Desperately, but...”

  “But what?”

  She looked so sweet in the moonlight. So confident and adorable at the very same time.

  “But... I’m a dream weaver. I don’t know anything about Argolea.”

  Her grin widened, and she stepped even closer, the sweet sce
nt of her making him light headed. “So I’ll teach you.”

  “I thought you didn’t like your world. You said you weren’t free there.”

  “I think it’s safe to say my perception has changed a lot since I said that.”

  When he blinked down at her, her expression softened. “Freedom isn’t a place, Ryder. I know that now. It’s something you feel inside. And I don’t hate Argolea. I love it. I love my family. I just didn’t appreciate them and my place in our world. You made me see just how much I have. Just how lucky I truly am. And I want that for you. I don’t want you to be alone anymore. I want you to know what it’s like to be a part of something special again. Because you are special. You’re extremely special, to me.”

  He could barely breathe from the things she was saying. The way she was saying them. The look of total adoration in her eyes when she said them.

  “Um, guys?” Talisa scanned the trees. “I hate to interrupt, but we really should think about leaving.”

  “All you have to do is say yes,” Zakara whispered, brushing her body against his in the moonlight. “Just one little yes.”

  He couldn’t stop himself. He slid his hand into her hair and tipped her face up toward his. “I don’t know. This is all happening so fast. Don’t you think it’s a little crazy?”

  Zakara laughed, pushed to her toes, and pressed her lips against his with a kiss he felt everywhere.

  “Yes, it is. Completely crazy. Which is how I know it’s right.” She lowered to her heels and grasped his hand, pulling her with him toward Talisa, who was already bringing her fingers together and opening a portal to Argolea, just as all the Argonauts could do.

  “Are you sure about this?” he asked her as he let her pull him along, unable to look away from her. “You’re going to have a lot to explain to that family of yours when you show up with a dream weaver who used to work for Zeus.”

  A mischievous smile curled her lips. “Someone once told me to stop worrying about what everyone else expects and to just be me. I’m finally being me, and my family’s just going to have to get used to it. I’m impulsive and wild and mad for a dream weaver who turned my world upside down.”