Warriors of Poseidon 04 - Atlantis Unmasked

of Switzerland that used to be a Fae stronghold while we‟re there,” Ven said, shaking his head. “I‟m still not quite sure how I wind up saying yes to everything she wants.”
     
    “Hard to argue with a woman who stopped a bomb from blowing up your thick skull,”
    Alexios said dryly.
     
    Ven laughed. “Yeah, there is that. Anyway, there‟s more to it than a simple training mission. We hear that Vonos is hiding the Vampire‟s Bane somewhere near St.
    Augustine. Evidently he has some kind of super spidey fortress of stupitude or something near there.”
     
    Alexios whistled. “Now that is a prize. Is it true that the diamond does what the myths claim?”
     
    “Quinn and Alaric saw Vonos use it to wipe out a whole crowd of vamps in seconds.
    The Bane exploded them clear out of their shoes, which sounds wicked cool. Vonos wasn‟t hurt at all, either, more‟s the pity.”
     
    Ven stood up, stretched, and yawned. “I think I didn‟t need that twentieth toast to the baby‟s health. My head is pounding like there‟s a room full of hammers in my skull.”
     
    “Nobody needed that twentieth toast,” Alexios admitted. He‟d been trying not to move his own head too quickly ever since he woke up.
     
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    “Look, here‟s the deal. We need you. Denal is in some kind of black funk after that stunt he pulled, and we can‟t even get him to go see Riley and the baby. Brennan has already gone back to Yellowstone to find out what in the hells is going on with the wolves, because that‟s a big problem, Tiernan is in Florida, and you know she and Brennan can‟t be anywhere near each other.” Ven stopped to take a breath, and then continued.
    “Conlan‟s obviously not going anywhere, and would you trust Christophe with this? He‟s as likely just to stab the recruits and be done with it. Also, I don‟t know why I‟m explaining all this to you. I serve as the King‟s Vengeance, not the damn social secretary.”
     
    Defeated, Alexios ignored the jibe and simply nodded. “There was a time when being part of the Seven meant fighting shoulder to shoulder. We are Poseidon‟s chosen elite—the royal guard to High Prince Conlan. Together, we have battled humanity‟s oppressors for centuries. Now, it seems as though we are being torn further and further apart.”
     
    “Maybe. Or maybe we‟re finally growing up, my friend. I have a new nephew now, and I intend to make the world as safe as possible for him. Especially since we‟re almost certainly taking Atlantis to the surface as soon as we find and restore all of the gems of Poseidon‟s Trident.”
     
    “I will do my part, of course. I will find that diamond, and I will do my best to turn these humans into a fighting force worthy to stand at our side.”
     
    “I know you will. Now, back to a more fascinating topic. Grace. Did you know the heritage there? She claims to be a descendant of Diana.”
     
    “I‟ve seen the bow she carries but only rarely seen her shoot it. She‟s very good when she does, though. I‟ve never seen her miss,” Alexios was forced to admit. “We‟ve fought on the same side often enough for me to know that. I‟d trust her to have my back in a bad situation. It‟s not that she‟s not a good fighter, it‟s just—”
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    “Personal?”
     
    “Yeah.”
     
    “Get over it,” Ven advised. “We‟re fighting a war here; we don‟t have time for personal.”
     
    “Is that what you told Erin? Before or after you took her to your bed?” Alexios asked, deliberately crude. He might be going along with this stupid pile of miertus plan, but that didn‟t mean he had to like it.
     
    But Ven didn‟t take the bait. “Get over it,” he repeated. “Or, if it really is that way for you and Grace—like me and Erin—then may the gods help you. Because your life is about to get very complicated, my friend.”
     
    Before Alexios could settle on a reply, the prince had left the room, no doubt returning to his warm bed and warm wife.
     
    And maybe the gods did need to help him, because suddenly Alexios was picturing a warm and willing Grace in his own bed, and his cock got so hard that it ached. Five years of self-enforced celibacy and strict self-control vanished into the mist at the thought of all that glorious hair spread out on Atlantean silk. Those golden arms and legs reaching to him. Those dark