A Job From Hell (Ancient Legends #1)

centuries,
and didn’t succeed. I took a deep breath to suppress my sudden joy. Amber’s
fear lingered on her like she wore it as a perfume. For the first time she
seemed to worry about me. In the heat of last night’s words, I figured the bond
wasn’t working after all and all she wanted was her old life back. Rage had driven
me insane, made me curse Fate for giving me a mortal. But I could sense
something about Amber’s attitude had changed. Her gaze was softer and in the
past few hours she’d raised her hand several times as if to touch me. And now
her need to protect me had flared up. I was finally starting to see progress. Hopefully,
it wasn’t too late for us.
    Somewhere behind me, Kieran’s said, “How
much does Daddy pay you to screw over other souls?”
    I shook my head and pulled Amber along. I
had no idea why Kieran kept winding Cass up. The girl was beyond normal, but it
couldn’t just be mutual dislike that drove my brother to be mean. As far as I
knew, Cass had done nothing to earn our ridicule. I made a mental note to talk
to Kieran about it once my problems with Amber were solved.
    The heavy mahogany door stood wide open. As
I walked through, I felt the invisible barrier across the threshold vibrate,
holding me back for a second, and then give in. Magic. Without Devon opening the path, I doubted I’d have been able
to pass through. It was a similar magic to the one protecting my house against
immortal intruders. That Cass got in without my explicit invitation showed me she
was something else, or stronger than anything the paranormal world could
conjure up.
    The space reeked of Shadows, dressed in
black robes, watching from the countless dark corners. A huge altar, surrounded
by countless white candles, was set up in the middle of the dimly lit,
cave-like room.
    “Look at that,” Cass said. “Now that’s how
you woo a girl.” She winked at me. “Are you taking notes?”
    “Candles are overrated,” Kieran said. “Just
like romance.”
    “You just haven’t found the right girl,”
Clare said. “She’ll come along.”
    “And then she’ll make a run for the hills.”
Cass laughed at her own joke.
    I squeezed Amber’s hand. The Shadows’ glare
brushed over us, their distaste for what I was palpable in the humid air.
Slowly, I turned my head to my right, ready to face another abomination Rebecca
created a long time ago: sitting on a high throne was Deidre, Queen of the
Shadows, an ancient soul living in the pain-ridden body of a dying girl,
trapped forever between life and death. The Shadows wanted the book badly so
they could search for a ritual to free Deidre from her need to feed on the life
force of her own people. Deidre was one of the reasons why I had found it so
easy to kill Rebecca when she attacked Blake. I had enough of her love for
torture.
    “You—” Deidre pointed a finger at
Clare, Cass and Kieran “—move over there to the wall.” Kieran and Clare
did as instructed, but Cass stood her ground.
    My jaw set as I met Deidre’s black gaze. I
bowed to hide my horrified expression. A glimpse at that dying body was enough
to send shivers down my spine. Deidre wouldn’t harm Amber because she wanted
the book more than I did. But I could be wrong. After underestimating Layla , I wouldn’t trust anyone but myself. I waited for Deidre
to speak, but instead it was Cass who took charge of the situation.
    “I’m the new Lore ambassador, here to save
the mortal from supernatural harm. Don’t you dare play a trick on me, Dee Dee . I’m much stronger than the whole bunch of you
together.” Her eyes glinted red as she glanced at Deidre, then walked to the
altar and picked up a burning candle. It melted under her fingers, wax dripping
onto the stony floor. With an exaggerated sigh, she placed what was left of it
back and peered from one face to the other. “Just a word of advice, guys,
living in a cemetery’s beyond macabre. You should look into proper housing.”
    Cass obviously enjoyed drama a bit too
much, but as long as it helped get Amber out of here alive, I’d do anything to
assist her. I tightened my grip around my mate’s waist. Her heart quickened as
her body—plump in all the right places—leaned into me. From the
corner of my eye, I watched Deidre rise from her seat and walk to the altar,
motioning Amber to step forward. I let go of her waist, but followed right
behind.
    “And you should look into proper manners
because your demon hands have left a